The Raven and The Lotus
by The Bandit Named Outlaw
Summary: Lie Ren is encounters a fight that he is later dragged into. A fight between a Tribe leader and two opposing tribe members. Ren is... affected in a mysterious and dangerous way. This is the only Fanfiction so far to have Raven B. and Lie Ren in the same character slot. Why wouldn't you click this. Finished. Sequel up for grabs.
1. Chapter 1

**This was an idea that I came up with after a severe cause of boredom and Fanfiction ideas. If you want it to continue be sure to say you do, if not, say you don't. I hope you enjoy this, as the only Fanfiction so far to feature Raven Branwen and Lie Ren.**

[hr]

It had been around two hours since team RNJR arrived to Mistral. They were all taking a much well deserved rest. Ruby was in a bed sleeping away, tired from the events that took place. Jaune had headed out into Mistral to check out the place. And Ren and Nora were resting in a bed. Ren was awake, but Nora was, like Ruby, sound asleep. Ren was in a seperate bed than his best friend. Instead of sleeping, he looked at the ceiling, debating on whether to go to sleep or to head out into Mistral. Go for a walk, or go to sleep.

After around ten more seconds, which felt like an eternity for Ren, he decided to go out for a walk. So he gets out of the bed and walks over to a dresser and picked up his StormFlower. He placed them at his side and picked up a noepad and pencil.

 _Dear Nora,_

 _Assuming you didn't just rush past this note that I'll be leaving on the door. I've decided to go out for a little bit. Get used to the scenery and relax a little. I'll be back soon._

 _~Love Ren._

And with that, Ren grabbed some tape and placed it on the door as he left out.

[hr]

Mistral truly was a beautiful sight to see. The home to Haven had a great looking town, and even greater looking mountians. Ren currently sat on one of the mountains looking at the village. He could help but smile at the sight ahead of him.

"Hmm, I wish I had a camera. Nora would like this view." He said. As he was looking, he saw a raven fly by. Ren only smirked at the bird, before he... felt something. It was someone's presence, at it wasn't friendly. Ren stood up and began to run toward the source.

[hr]

After around ten minutes of running, Ren stopped moving. Not necessarily losing the sense, but knowing it was close. He knew he needed to be very careful. He closed in on the location carefully. He moved slowly past the bushes, making sure to minimize his sound to nothing.

He emerges past the bushes to see a women in the middle of an open meadow. The women seemed to wear a shallow cut black dress, a red girdle-belt, and a pair of matching gauntlets. She also wore detached black leggings with a red splatter pattern, and black leather boots beneath them. She also seemed to wear some kind of mask on her face.

She also had a chamber on her left side with her right hand in front of a chamber end. As if she was holding onto a sword.

In front of her were two males. One was a wearing what looked like a bloody blindfold, a red trench coat, a red top hat, a burgandy under vest, and a white collared shirt under the vest, a pair of red pants and black boots. In his left hand was a steampunk like pump action shotgun with a axe blade at barrel.

The other one was a black long-haired faunus with a black tank top with a red hourglass on it, and a pair of black cargo pants and running shoes. He also had a sadistic smile on his face. A smile, that Ren recognized. It didn't help that this one was also an arthropod. But not a scorpion, instead a spider. This one had four spider legs emerging from his back, technically giving him eight limbs (Four spider legs, two arms, two legs). He also had splicer hooks attached to his arms.

They didn't look friendly towards the woman. The woman did look like she could hold her own. Ren was gonna stay where he was as a just in case.

[hr]

"Miss Raven Branwen, I do not intend on staying here any longer than I need to. I've only come with an offer. An offer that will bring peace to our tribes." The blindfolded one said.

"I know better than to trust a snake, Kobura." Raven said. The blindfolded man, known as Kobura, simply growled and licked his teeth with a black forked tongue.

"You're making this more difficult than it needs to be." Kobura said.

"I'll give you a chance to leave Kobura. Turn around and go. I will not ask again." Raven said. The spider faunus gave a sadistic chuckle.

"It seems that talking is out of the question. Rajak." Kobura called. The Spider faunus's grin only widened. Revealing his teeth was very sharp. "End this quickly."

"With pleasure." Rajak said. He charges at Raven, barely giving her time to take out her blade. Luckily, She managed to do so and block two slashes with her red sword.

Rajak charges in again and strikes twice, only for Raven to block them both. Raven attempts to slash a his torso, but Rajak dashes back and then dashes forward. The two slash past one another, but Rajak was quicker on his feet and quickly kicked Raven in her back. She quickly turns around and slashes at Rajak's head. He dodges that, and counters with an upward slash to Raven's face. Only to miss by inches. Raven moves in, only for Rajak to quickly move behind her and grab her with his hooks and throw her over to the ground.

As Raven recovered, Rajak charges in with a slash to the face. Raven blocks it and ducks under another hook slash aimed at her head. She then kicks him back and cuts him twice, in his torso and chest before grabbing his arm and throwing him onto his back.

Rajak laughs and uses his Spider legs to lift him up and turn around and drop to his own feet. Still with that sadistic smile.

"Creepy." Raven said. She charges in, using her sword to deliver some devastating attacks that did nothing to Rajak blocking them with his spider legs. Rajak then spots an opening and moves in.

First he slashes at Raven's front, and before she could turn around, slashes in a diagonal form in her back. While in the air, he dashes down, cutting Raven once again. And then slash dashes her two more times. That was enough to send her to her knees.

[hr]

Ren watched from the bushes. He was amazed at the fight, but also alert. He needed to make sure, whoever was the villian wouldn't get the drop on him.

Until he noticed the blindfolded one was nowhere to be found.

'Wait, where'd he go?' Ren thought.

"There's no use in hiding young one." A voice said from behind him. Ren turns around just in time to dodges an axe attack to the head. He blocks two more attacks to his body and then stops an stab to his torso with his StormFlower.

"The nose knows." Kobura said. It was then that Ren noticed that he was only blocking the blade. Not the barrel. Kobura pulls the trigger, which fired a blast that sent Ren flying towards the meadow. Ren lands harshly onto his back, but quickly rolls to his feet. However, he was hurt. Badly, and clenched his side. Kobura jumps into Ren's line of sight and pumps his shotgun axe. Ren prepares himself for battle.

[hr]

Rajak charges in again, coming in with a kick. Raven blocks it and counters with a sword strike to his torso, knocking him to the ground. Slashes him into the air. As he was coming back down, Raven kept him into the air with more sword slashes. She then knocks him up into the air and then kicks him away.

Rajak flips onto all eights and started running towards her like that.

[hr]

Kobura jumps at Ren, performing a spinning spear attack, that Ren blocked, and with all his strength, forced him over his own head. Kobura recovers mid air and comes down with an aerial slash into a back slash attack. Both were blocked. Ren attempts to counter, but that was blocked and countered as well. Ren only barely blocked that, leaning back as he kept the axe blade from hitting him. Ren attempts to go on the offensive. But it was proved useless as it was all blocked. Kobura goes on the offensive and Slashes at Ren's torso, chest and head. Multiple times. Ren was hit around five times. All of which were devasting attacks. Ren was then hit with the butt of the axe gun and Kobura spins it a few times before blasting Ren back with another shot. When Ren recovered. He was not feeling to good. His aura was low, and he was out of breath. Even worse, he was outmatched.

[hr]

Rajak and Raven clash once more. One enjoying themselves, the other rather irriated. Raven's attack were doing her no good. Rajak was either too fast to hit, or too quick to block her attacks.

After blocking a kick to her face with her sword that sent her sliding back. Makes contact with Ren. She turns around to see Kobura was pumping his shotgun once more.

"Get out of here kid. You're gonna get yourself killed." Raven warned. Ren wasn't about to back down. More so the reason that he couldn't rather than wouldn't. The two ended up back to back. Raven put her sword back into the chamber and spun the dial.

"Backing down isn't an option." Ren said. He stands in a defensive fighting stance once more.

"Hope is not on our side, and you still help me fight? You must be crazy kid." Raven implied. Ren watched as Kobura came close. Ren tightened the grip on his StormFlower.

"You can thank Nora for that." Ren said. Kobura gave a smirk. As did Rajak. Rajak ran on all eights as Kobura ran forward. They then jump over the targets they fought, and switched to the other. Rajak now faced Ren, and Kobura now faced Raven. Rajak, charged in fast, slashing his hooks at Ren. Ren only barely dodges it, and tries to kick Rajak's side. Rajak turns with his back facing the kick allowing his spider leg to block. Ren stumbles back, shooting his StormFlower. Rajak blocks the bullets and slams his hooks down against Ren's StormFlower. Ren manages to block it, but he was leaning back and off balance. Noticing this, Rajak kicks Ren into the air.

As Ren was in the air, something grabbed his leg. He looked and saw that it was a think, silky, rope-like string wrapped around his leg. The string was coming from the spider leg of the faunus.

With the string, Rajak spins around and throws Ren farther towards the meadow, and then runs after him.

[hr]

Kobura charges at Raven as she pulled out a blue katana. The two exchange in a multitude of slashes. The two then clash together. Facing one another as they pushed against each other's blade.

"Still don't want to hear my offer?" Kobura asked.

"Fat chance you poisonous snake." Raven said. Kobura grins. He pushes his axe up, ending the clash and starts to attack with swing after swing. Raven wasn't able to keep up with all of them, and was hit multiple times. However, she did see an opening, and went for it. She stabs her blade into his torso, and it went through. Kobura was unaffected. He instead smirked. That's when Raven noticed her fatal flaw, a fact she had completely forgotten.

Kobura swings his axe at Raven's head, causing her to quickly pull out her sword and backflip away from it. Kobura's wound poured out blood. But it didn't touch the ground. Instead, it floated to his hand, and his blood soon transformed into a sword. Raven's fatal flaw was forgetting Kobura's semblance. Indivisual Hemokinesis.

"Now the deal is off." Kobura said. He then charges in.

[hr]

Ren recovers onto his hands and knees. He looks at his hands and noticed two things. One: He had two large cuts on each hand. Two: His StormFlowers weren't in them. He looks around for his StormFlowers and sees them off in the distance. He stands up to get them, before feeling pain once more. This time, in his right side.

He looks and sees a gash there, just below the ribs. This meant his aura was completely down. A very bad thing. He ignores the pain and limbs to his weapons. To his horror, Rajak jumps right in front of them. Ren stops and slowly began to back away. Rajak does a simple laugh and then takes off his splicer hooks and put them on his back.

"Let's make it a fair fight, shall we?" He said as he got onto all fours with his spider legs in the air. This was very bad for Ren. His aura was down, he was critically hurt, and his opponent had a four limbed advantage. But, if Ren ran, he wouldn't make it far. So he gets into his own fighting stance, and braces for any pain that welcomed him.

Rajak charges forward.

[hr]

Raven was on the ground. Down but not out. She had a few cuts on her legs and arms, but she was fine. However, she was beaten down to the point where her mask was knocked off. She lays up to see Kobura pointing the tip of his axe blade right at her.

"All you had to do was listen to my offer. But you just couldn't trust a snake." Kobura said. Raven tries to get up, but she was just kicked back down. Kobura then hears a scream of agony. Kobura turns his ears toward the sound and picked up the sounds of someone's bones breaking.

While she thought he was distracted, Raven picks up her sword and aims for his head. Kobura blocks it with the butt of the axe gun and pulls the trigger, firing at Raven's feet. An explosive round sends Raven flying back. She lands on her back and then flips on her stomach. She looked up to see Kobura walking away from her. And towards her unknown ally.

[hr]

Ren had suffered a devastating kick to his left side which resulted in at least three broken ribs. Ren was in no condition to fight. But he had to defend himself at all costs. Rajak rushes in again and throws two punches. Both Ren managed to block. And a flip kick, that Ren only barely moved out of the way of. Thinking he was in the clear, Ren tries to go for an attack, only for one of the spider legs to puncture his foot. Leaving him in enough pain to leave him open for a kick to send him to the ground.

Ren's vision began to fail him. He bled from his hands, his right side and now his foot. And he had at least three broken ribs, if not more. Ren couldn't do anything to save him. And now he could see the other one approaching. Ren tries to crawl back, but it did absolutely nothing. He was out of time and out of options.

Kobura sticks the blade end of the axe in the dirt and approached Ren.

"You are a strong specimen young one. Anyone else would've been dead a while ago. I shall make this worth my time." Kobura said. He grasps Ren's throat and began to chant something that Ren couldn't make out.

However, Ren could make out the blood on Kobura's blindfold turning black.

Kobura finishes his chanting, and open's his mouth. A black smoke emerges from his mouth and a black ink comes out and runs across his shoulder, to his arm, to his hand, and then to Ren's face.

Ren felt burning. And a lot of it. It burned him so bad he began to scream in agony. To him, this was worse than broken ribs, this was worse than being punched by a giant robot. Worse than being slammed by a nuckelavee grimm. It was the worse pain Ren had ever felt in his life. This soon prompted him to lose conciousness.

Raven ran towards the group with her red blade and jumps into the air. When she landed, she severes Kobura's arm. Cutting it off at the elbow. The now severed arm lays on the ground, which Kobura facing Raven with a smile on his face. Rajak was ready to attack, but it was too late. Raven had already made a portal and was carrying Ren through it. Before the portal closed, Rajak threw the StormFlower through it. One missed Raven, the other got her in the shoulder.

The portal closes, and the two disappeared. Kobura continued to smile. Rajak, was actually pretty confused.

"Um... Kobura? Why are you smiling?"

"You'll see soon enough Rajak. Kobura said as he walked away. Rajak soon followed. "You'll see soon enough.

[hr]

Raven's portal opened inside of another meadow. Closer to Mistral. Ren's first StormFlower, flew out of the portal first. Then came out Raven, who was carrying Ren. She places Ren on the ground and takes the other StormFlower out of her shoulder. She then places her ear on Ren's chest, attempting to get his heartbeat. It was faint, but it was there. He was alive, but for how long?

She began to look around for something. As she looked around, a black ink emeged onto Ren's left arm and left side of his face. The ink didn't cover up the entirety of his face or arm, but instead looked like a tribal dragon.

Ren opens his eyes and both of his eyes had pitch black scleras. He looks at Raven, and as she turned to look at him, he lunges on top of her and began to use both hands to choke her.

Raven was pinned on the ground being choked by her now-former ally. She attempted to pry his hands off with her own, but found she couldn't, and was losing conciousness quickly. As black seeped into her vision, she saw the ink on Ren's face and the color of his eyes. He wasn't in control. But hope wasn't lost.

The ink slowly disappeared and Ren's eyes slowly turned back to normal. He closes his eyes and reopens them and saw himself choking the woman he was helping. He quickly gets off of her and stands on his feet. He backs away with his hands up.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to. I-" He stopped as he saw a black ink slowly disappear from his left hand. He follows the ink, as it ends, dissappearing on his shoulder.

That's when he noticed his pain was no longer there. His cuts and gash. Healed. His Ribs, no longer broken. His bruises, no longer there. What happened to him?

Raven slowly gets to her feet and makes eye contact with Ren. Ren looked in her eyes and was reminded of someone he knew.

'Yang.' He thought.

"Meet me at the hotel lobby exactly twelve hours from now. You and I need to talk." She said as she activated a portal again. Ren grabs her arm before she stepped through it.

"Wait." He requested. She stopped and looked at him.

"Who are you? And who were they?" He asked.

"My name's Raven." She said. Ren released his grip and Raven stepped through the portal. But before doing so her last words were. "And they are your new enemies."

With those last words, she stepped through the portal and disappeared. Leaving Ren confused. All Ren knew was that that woman's name was Raven, he had to meet her again at the hotel lobby, and those men were now his new enemies. Now, all he could do was hope she would bring answers. He needed to wait twelve hours. If he could make it that long.

[hr]

 **All done, and boy was this an adventure to write. Anyways, be sure to leave some feedback in the reviews and be sure to tell me if this should or shouldn't be continued.**

 **Fun facts time.**

 **Kobura is Japanese for Cobra**

 **Rajak is a name illuding to the polish name Pajak, which means spider.**

 **Both characters were influenced from Bloodborne.**

 **That's all for now. Tell me what you think of this and be sure to check out my other story MPRD (Imperial Red)**

 **And don't forget to tell me if this should be continued. And also share some ideas.**

 **Bandit named Oulaw, Out.**


	2. Two steps forward, One step back

Chapter 2: Two steps forward, One step back

Ren managed to walk his way back to Mistral. He was still very confused of what had just happened. As he walked, he continued to look at his hands. He was very confused as to what had happened to him. And now he had to wait tweleve hours in order to get some answers. Which begged the question, how did she know what hotel he was in?

He had so many questions. Questions that just couldn't be shaken from his head. He needed something to take his mind off of what happened to him. That was gonna be very hard to do.

 ***Stomach Growl***

Maybe some food would be a good start. He looked around and laid his eyes on an outdoor noodle shop. He makes his way over there and takes a seat on a bench. The shopkeeper, a black haired badger faunus male, smiled at his arrival.

"Welcome to my noodle shop. What kind of noodles will you have?" He asked with a smile. Ren took out a couple of Lien and looked at the menu above the shopkeeper's head.

"Um, Lo Mein noodles please." Ren said. The shopkeeper walks off and comes back with a large bowl of Lo Mein.

"That'll be _Ⱡ_ 15 please." The shopkeeper said. Ren hands over the Lien and the shopkeeper gives Ren some chopsticks. Ren takes the bowl and blew on the noodles, which were pretty hot. He then hears rapid running footsteps. Naturally, he looked to see what was going on. He sees someone running with some kind of hoverboard in his hand.

"Hey! Give me back my board!" He heard a female's voice shout. Acting quickly, Ren stands up and kicks the bench into the suspected thief's running line. Tripping him. The thief trips over the bench and drops the board on the way. The thief quickly stands up and picks the hoverboard back up and continues to run. Ren kicks one end of the bench up and kicks the bench towards the thief. The bench hits the thief and knocks him to the ground, hard. He tries to get up, but a foot to his back stopped him.

Ren stomped on the thief's back to keep him on the ground. He then picks up the hoverboard and walks off. He sees a girl, probably the same age as him, running towards him.

She was in a dark purple hooded sweater over a mauve sweater. She also wore black shorts, as well as knee pads and elbow pads on her arms and legs. She was also wearing black shoelaced sneakers that go all the way to her ankles. She also had light green eyes, and black markings under her eyes.

Ren recognized her. She was from the Vytal Tournament. This was her hoverboard.

"Dude... That was awesome!" She said. Ren hands her her hoverboard. She takes it and hugs it.

"Thanks a ton man." She said. She holds out her hand.

"My names Reese."

"Lie Ren." Ren said as he shake her hand. She smiles at him. Before seeing the thief running towards Ren. Before she could warn him, Ren lets go of her hand and hits the thief with a tornado kick to the thief's head. Knocking the thief out this time.

"Dude, nice kick." Reese said.

"Thanks." Ren said. He looks at the thief. He wore a black jacket, a pair of black pants, and a black ski mask.

"Well, thanks for helping me get my board back. You and I should hang sometime." Reese offered. Ren, didn't take his eyes of the thief.

"Sure." Ren said.

"Well, I gotta get going. Catch you later handsome." She said as she walked off.

"Uh-huh." Ren said. Ren felt... off. First, he was angrier than he should feel. Second, he saw black aura illuminating from the thief. He clenches his free fist. He also felt two of his teeth get sharper.

"Sir?" The shopkeeper called. Ren slowly looked at the shopkeeper. And the shopkeeper flinched at what he saw.

Ren had the tribal dragon tattoo on his eye and arm, and the scleas of his eyes were black.

Ren shook his head a little and his face returned back to normal.

"Yes?" Ren asked. The shopkeep shakily just gulps.

"Do you want your meal to go? I-if s-so I'm gonna need the bowl back." He said. Ren noticed the bowl was still in his hand.

"Oh, sorry." Ren said. He walked back to the stand and sat down.

That's when he realized the bench wasn't there.

(())

Ren walked into his hotel room and walked over to his bag, where he had a spare tailcoat. And also had a large box of noodles.

Nora wasn't in the bed anymore, and Ren noticed, when he walked in, the note he left on the door was gone.

Ren took off his tailcoat and takes out a spare. He puts the spare tailcoat on, and takes his messy one into the bag. He then sat onto his bed and began to eat his noodles. As he ate, he felt the urge to look around the room, so he did. As he looked, he felt some of the noodle sauce drip off of his mouth. He quickly moves his box to catch the sauce before it got on to his shirt.

Not wanting to mess up this shirt, Ren took it off and placed it onto the bed. Now that he could eat in without staining his shirt, he looked around the room again. He then made eye contact with the mirror. Upon looking at the mirror, he saw himself, with the ink on him once more. The tribal dragon ink was on the left side of his face, and his left arm. And the black background of his eyes disturbed him. He looked at his arm, but nothing was there. He looked back at the mirror and saw his figure standing up. There was black aura emerging from his feet. He also had two black feathered wings on his back. His mirrored figure looked at him and smirked. Mirror Ren then gave off a semi high pitched laugh (Devil Jin's laugh).

This scared Ren to the point where he jumped off the bed and crawled backwards. Dropping the noodles. He looked at the mirror as it disappeared in black aura. Ren's breathing increased, as did his heart rate. He heard running, coming to his room. He tried to calm down, but in the midst of doing so, a knocking was on his door. A knocking that showed concern.

"Hey, is everything alright in there?" Qrow's voice said. Before Ren could answer, Qrow opened the door to see Ren leaning against the wall and a box of noodles on the floor.

"Ren? Are you alright?" Qrow asked. Ren calmed down and quickly thought about it.

"I'm fine, I just..." Ren stopped as he held his head. He couldn't just tell Qrow his own reflection scared him. He just stayed quiet.

"You need a moment to yourself?" Qrow asked.

"I think I've had enough of those." Ren replied. He stood up and walked over to the spilled noodles and cleaned up his mess and threw them away.

"Didn't you just come back from a walk in the village?" Qrow asked.

"Yea, but I need something to past the time. Any ideas?" Ren asked. Qrow thought for a moment, before finally responding.

"I would stop by the bar, but I don't think they'd let you get any drinks. I think you should find your friends. They'd probably have something to do." Qrow answered. Ren shrugged. Although he grew a little tired of just getting in and going back out. But he had hours before he could get answers on what happened.

"Alright. See ya Qrow." Ren said. Qrow just nodded as Ren walked off. Ren had no idea if he needed to keep this a secret or not, but he'll have to wait until he got answers.

(())

As Ren exited the doors once again, he saw his orange haired friend.

"Ren!" She calls as she ran over and hugs her friend.

"Ren, Team ABRN's here. They're so cool, you've gotta meet him!" Nora said. Before another word could be exchanged, Nora pulls Ren off with her. At least he had something to take his mind off the questions he has.

(())

They arrive to where Team ABRN was, and they see Team ABRN laughing with Ruby and Jaune. Ren managed to recognize Reese, who managed to recognize him as well. Reese stands up and walks towards him, Arslan following behind.

"Handsome? Is that you?" Reese asked pointing to Ren. Ren looked around a little before pointing to himself.

"Yea you." Reese said. Earning a glare from Nora that passed over her head.

"Thanks for saving my board." She said.

"Wait, he's the one who got your board back?" Another female voice said. Ren looked over to see a dark skinned female. She wore a yellow robe with only one wide, loose fitting sleeve over a black tube top. She also had black pants and shoes and a red sash embroidered with a white "endless knot" on it.

She had bandages on her legs and arms, as well as a red necklace and what appears to be two matching red sticks on the back left side of her head. Her hair was platinum blonde and olive green eyes.

"Yep, this is him. Ren, meet Arslan." Reese introduced. Ren offered a handshake, to which Arslan accepts. However, as they shook hands, Ren felt Arslan's strength behind her handshake, she really was strong. They release their grips.

"I thought Reese was bluffing when she said you were handsome. For once she was telling the truth." Arslan said placing a hand on her hip. Ren scratches the back of his head with an uncomfortable smile on his face. He wasn't exactly used to women calling him handsome, neither was Nora. Who was about one strain away from breaking a blood vessel.

"Um... Thanks." Ren said not really knowing how else to respond.

"Come over and meet the rest of the team." Arslan offered, leading Ren and Nora towards the others.

Ruby, Jaune, Reese, and the remaining members of Team ABRN were sitting at a table. Jaune was entertaining the group with a few jokes.

"So then I said, 'Dude, stop impersonating a flamingo.' It encouraged him to put his foot down." Jaune said. The table laughs.

"Bolin, Nadir." Arslan called, getting their attention.

"This handsome fella here is Ren. He's the guy who got Reese's board back." Arslan said. The first one to stand up was the lightly-tan skinned, amber eyed, black haired one. He wore a yellow sash over a dark blue vest and gray pants with yellow lacing up the sides. He also wore black boots and black fingerless gloves, and a dark gray necklace.

"Nice to meet you Ren. Bolin Hori." Bolin said. Shaking Ren's hand. Next one to stand up was Nadir. The undercut portion of his hair was black and the top portion of his hair was pink tied back into a short ponytail.

He wore a cream-colored short-sleeved jacket with yellow details and a black, long-sleeved V-neck shirt, with cream colored fingerless gloves. He also wore a black medium-length pants and cream colored sneakers.

"Nadir Shiko." He said offering his hand to. Ren reaches for his hand and as he did, he blacked out for about two seconds. When he became come back, he saw Nadir tensed up with a pained look on his face. Ren looks down to see that he was crushing Nadir's hand. Not only that, but Ren saw black ink emerging from his detached sleeve. He quickly lets go of his hand. And then just as fast, hides his arm behind him.

"Sorry about that." Ren said. Nadir shakes his hand to dull the pain.

"Jeez man, you almost destroyed my hand." Nadir said.

"Sorry, I guess I..." He quickly thinks of something to not seem suspicious. "Sometimes forget my own strength."

"Been there bud." Arslan said. Nadir started to rub his hand and Jaune looked at Ren with a raised eyebrow.

"Is everything alright Ren?" Jaune asked.

"Yes, everything's fine." Ren answered. Still hiding his arm.

"Come sit with us, we can past the time until Uncle Qrow needs us." Ruby suggested. Ren and Nora walk over to the table and took a seat. Team ABRN joins them. Arslan, Reese and Nora sat with Ren, as Bolin and Nadir sat on Ruby and Jaune's side. As they talked, Ren stayed quieter than usual.

As if he felt like he was being watched. He looks behind him and sees a Raven on top of a building. The Raven looks at him and seemingly tilts its head.

However, he just paid it no mind and turned back around. But there was something about that Raven that made him think. Was that Raven watching him? Or was it just there? Only time will tell.

(())

Time had taken it's toll and it was time for Team RNJR to head to bed. Nora was for some reason, extremly tired. It could've been the best out of 50 arm wrestling she had with Arslan. They were both tired, too tired to finish the last match, and both were tied. It had apparently taken so long that the sun had set.

Ren had to carry Nora back to there room. Ren was ahead of Jaune and Ruby and made it to the door first. He opens the door and carries Nora to the bed. The sleeping hammer wielder lets go of Ren upon her back making contact with the bed. Ren just puts the blanker on her as she slept.

Jaune makes his way to the bathroom to take a shower. Ren looks at the window and is reminded of what Raven said to him.

 _"Meet me at the hotel lobby exactly twelve hours from now. You and I need to talk."_ Ren recalled in his head. He walks to the door and grabs the door knob.

"Where are you going?" Ruby asked. Ren turned around to see Ruby sitting on the bed.

"Just... out." Ren said.

"Out where?"

"Out for a walk."

"This late?" Ruby asked. Ren's hand started to recieve the ink once more. Ren hadn't noticed yet.

"Yes. I'll be back soon." Ren said, as he opened the door. That's when Ren noticed the ink on his arm. He quickly hids arm behind him.

"Is everything alright?" Ruby asked. Ren had a moment of silence before answering.

"So far, I'm actually not to sure." Ren said. Ruby shoots him a sympathetic look.

"If you wanna talk about it Ren, we're all here for you." Ruby said. Ren could do nothing but look out the door.

"I'm not too sure I can." Ren said before leaving the room, closing the door behind him. This left Ruby curious, and feeling sorry for Ren. Was he still thinking about Kuroyuri?

If he was and needed to talk about it, she was gonna wait until Ren was ready to talk about it.

(())

Ren walks down the hall towards the lobby. He had no clue if it had been twelve hours or not, but if it wasn't, it pays to be early at least.

He decides to take a seat by the door. He went over all the things that made the ink come out, and what it caused him to do.

It came out when the thief was knocked out, and Ren felt much angrier than he should've been. Almost the same anger he felt when he was back in Kuroyuri. He could see some black aura illuminating from the thief.

He saw his own reflection come to life. Looking like some kind of winged monster. Or even a demon for that matter.

When he was shaking Nadir's hand, he blacked out and reawoke to see himself crushing Nadir's hand.

And lastly, when he was talking to Ruby, the ink reappeared. He hoped Ruby didn't see his arm do that.

So what ever is in his body, it seemed to want to control him. It's fighting to take control over his body. Like a man with two souls.

This begs the question ones more. What did that man do to him?

As he held his head in frustration, he sees some familiar pair of black leather boots standing in front of him. He looks up to see the woman from earlier standing in front of him.

"Raven? Right?" Ren asked before looking up to see the woman's face. Her red eyes were the comfirmation.

"Follow me." Raven said. Ren stands up and grabs her arm before she could walk out the door.

"What did that man do to me?" Ren asked. Before Raven could open her mouth, Ren spoke again. "I need an answer now." Ren said. Raven glares at him.

"You and I need to talk, You have questions, and I have answers, none can be spoken of here." Raven said. Ren lets go of her arm and follows her out of the hotel.

 _'This all better be worth it'_ Ren thought to himself.

As they walked out of the hotel, a silver haired male wearing a red sleeveless leather jacket, a pair of baggy jeans and dark brown boots.

His hair looked like a shorter version of Ren's, but only reaching the top of his back. He also wore a black headband. He pulls a scroll out of his pocket and calls someone.

"Kobura. Xuè Zhǎo here. I found them. Hmph, your victim doesn't look too tough. He won't last against me, I'm sure." The male said.

'Do not underestimate him. If he hasn't been corrupted by now, he's stronger than I thought. Keep an eye on him. Don't do anything stupid.' Kobura said over the scroll. Xuè Zhǎo rolled his eyes.

"Fine. I won't." Xuè Zhǎo said. As he put his scroll away, a smirk appeared on his face.

(())

Ren and Raven walk into some kind of bar, with Raven leading the way, and Ren following close behind.

They walk to a table, far into the bar in the corner. As she sat down, she placed her weapon next to the seat, and her mask on the table. Ren takes a seat facing her.

Raven faced Ren, and Ren remained quiet. Ren had already asked one question, and needed that answer.

"Before I answer any questions, let me make on thing clear." Raven started. "This talk, never happened. You and I never met. You never saw me, you never spoke to me. If anyone questions you, deny everything. Understood?" Raven asked. Ren simply nods his head.

"Good." Raven stands up. "I'll be right back." She said. She walks toward the bar and returns with two double shots glasses and a bottle of some kind of liquor. She sits back down and place the glasses on the table. The bottle was called Grimm Dragon Vodka, and it was clear.

"You are aware that-"

"You're a minor? Yes, but this is my way of saying I trust you." Raven said as she poured the liquor into the glasses and passes one to Ren. Ren takes the glass and looks at it.

"I can trust you, right?" Raven asked.

"Yes." Ren said. He then offered his glass for a toast. To which Raven accepts. Raven begins to drink hers down, and Ren looked unsure about his. He then exhales and decides to get it over with. He gulps it down, trying his best to ignore the burning sensation in his throat. When he finished, he began to cough.

"First time always sucks." Raven said as Ren places his glass on the table.

"I don't wanna waste anymore time Raven, I need answers. Whatever I got possessed with. Whatever that man did to me. I need to know." Ren said. Raven sighs.

"Kobura possessed your subconcious with the Yami no tenshi. It attempts to overtake the possessor's conciousness shortly after. If you experiance minor blackouts, that's why." Raven explained. Ren had one answer collected but another question came up.

"The Yami no tenshi? Doesn't that mean Angel of Darkness?" Ren asked. Raven was a little surprised.

"You're pretty smart kid." Raven said.

"Why would he possess me?" Ren asked. Raven stopped talking for a moment.

"That's the reason why I wanted to wait twelve hours." Raven said. Ren was confused right away.

"Normally, when he hits someone with the ink of possession, they become possessed within ten hours. But you... you're different." Raven said.

"What does that mean?" Ren asked. Raven looked at Ren, looked him in the eye, and leaned forward a little.

"What's your name?" Raven asked.

"Lie Ren." Raven's eyes went wide for a brief moment. Ren noticed it and wasn't gonna let that go unnoticed. She sat back down.

"Why does that surprise you?" Ren asked. Raven went silent once more. That annoyed Ren, he tried to hide it, but... it came out again.

The ink began to appear on his arm once more, and he slams his fists on the table.

"Answer me!" He grits. Raven grabs the handle of her weapon beside her seat. Ren strained, but managed to surpress the ink away. A silence fell between them.

"I'm sorry." Ren said. Raven sighs and releases the handle of her sword.

"The men who you saw in the meadow were Kobura Alver and Rajak Vemim. Members of the Black Claw. They possess people with the Yami no tenshi, it takes over there bodies. Once the bodies are taken over, they are under the control of the Black Claws." Raven explained. Ren now knew who the men were, and why he blacked out. Now he needed to know why she looked familiar. However, he was staring for a too long, and Raven noticed it.

"Are you done with the questions, or are you just gonna keep staring at me?" Raven asked.

"Sorry, it's just... You remind me of someone." Ren asked. Now it's Raven's turn to be confused.

"I do?" Raven asked. Ren nods.

"A friend of mine. Yang Xiao Long." Ren said. Raven's eyes widened again. However, her expression quickly changed.

"She ended up losing her arm when Beacon fell. I hope she's okay." Ren said.

"I know..." Raven said. Ren looked at her as if she spoke another language.

"What?"

"I said, I know." Raven said.

"How do you know that?" Ren asked. Raven went silent for a minute.

"Raven?"

"Qrow told me." Raven answered.

"How do you know Qrow? And how do you know Yang?" Ren asked.

"Qrow is my brother, and Yang is my daughter." Raven said. Ren was slightly angered, but made sure not to show it.

"So... you did nothing to help her?" Ren said. Raven was annoyed, being reminded of her conversation with Qrow.

"You don't know anything." Raven said.

"I know that instead of tending to your daughter at a time of need, you're instead here. Picking fights with tribes associated with possessing people with dark power that overtakes them." Ren said. Raven become angered.

"I told my brother that Beacon would fall, and it did. I told him Ozpin would fail, and he has. We're up against a deadly force we know nothing about." Raven said. She hadn't realized her mistake until Ren spoke again.

"Who's we?" Ren asked. Raven grits her teeth, before answering again.

"The tribe I lead. The tribe Qrow left. The tribe I call my family."

"They're your family? What about your own daughter, did you forget she exists?"

Raven stands to her feet, clearly upset and angry.

"If you don't have anymore questions about the Yami no tenshi, then we no longer have anything to talk about." Raven said grabbing her mask. Ren stops her.

"Why are you here?" Ren asked. The two glare at one another. Raven scoffs.

"Again." She pulls the mask from her grasp. "None of your business."

She turns around and proceeds to walk off.

"I'll be keeping an eye on you. My advice?" She uses her sword to make a portal. "Find a way to control it. Before it controls you." She then steps through. Ren could only look in frustration as she walked through. Ren could only look in slight anger and frustration. How the hell was he gonna find a way to control something he knows nothing about? He stands up and was gonna walk out the bar, but looked back at the Grimm Dragon Vodka.

"It'd be a shame to let this go to waste." He said grabbing the bottle.

(())

 **All done. I hope this was enjoyable for you.**

 **And thank you to SaturnNights and Aiellord for voting for this to continue. Please fav, and leave a review, and I'm out.**


	3. Taking Control

Chapter 3: Fighting For Control

Ren walks out of the bar doors and looks at the liquor in his hand. He looks to his left and his right, and takes a swing of it. It wasn't as bad as his first time. It still burned, but not as bad as when he took his first shot. He wasn't expecting to be used to it so quickly. He takes another swing, and then looks at the bottle. To Ren's surprise, he had already drank half the bottle. He began to walk back to the address, with the bottle still in his hand. That's when he felt someone's presence. He looks around to see no one there. Was this the alcohol taking effect on him? This was his first time taking alcohol, so it wouldn't be a surprise. But, he'd expect to at least finish the bottle first.

He walks a good ten more feet nd feels the presence again. This time, when he turned around, he saw a black wolf. The wolf tilted its head at Ren with its ears tilted back, implying that it was curious. Ren kneels down and dog a soft clicking noise with his mouth. The wolf approaches him, slowly and cautiously. Ren held out his hand, palm down as a just in case the wolf tries to bite. The wolf gets close enough to smell Ren's hand. The wolf then licks his hand.

"Was that you sneaking up on me?" Ren asked as he pet the wolf's side with a smile. The wolf responds by panting and nuzzling Ren's hand.

"I guess that's a yes. Well at least I know you're friendly." Ren said standing to his feet. He began to walk to the hotel, only to realize the wolf was following him.

"Oh no, I'm not sure you can come with me." Ren said. The wolf only panted. Ren steps back, and the wolf stepped forward. Ren then got an idea.

"I know, sit." Ren said. The wolf sat down. Ren smirked. "Good boy, now stay."

Ren takes a few steps towards the hotel and looked back at the wolf. He still sat there. Ren smile and walked away.

He goes back into the hotel and makes sure the door was closed behind him as he made his way back to the room his team was in.

Meanwhile, Raven was standing on top of a rooftop, watching as the wolf followed Ren into the hotel.

"I will be keeping a close eye on you Ren. A very close eye." Raven said. She jumps off the roof and goes into bird form and flies off.

(())

Ren makes it to his room and reaches for the doorknob. However, before his hand made contact, he heard footsteps approaching. Due to curiosity, he looks in that direction to see who it was. It was Qrow. Qrow sees Ren.

"Ah Ren, I see you're up." Qrow said. He then noticed the bottle in Ren's hand and smirked.

"So, you decided to stop by the bar after all." He unexpectedly takes the bottle from Ren and reads the label. "Hmm, Grimm Dragon Vodka huh? That's some pretty heavy stuff kid. Didn't know you weren't a lightweight."

Qrow takes out his flask and pours some of the Vodka into it.

"At least I know you've got good taste." Qrow said giving the bottle back to Ren. Qrow then toasts Ren and began to drink. Ren shrugs and does the same, drinking the last of the vodka. Ren began to cough after finishing.

"Really hits you hard doesn't it?" Qrow asked.

"Yes it does." Ren said coughing once more.

"Get some sleep kid, I've got someone you need to meet tomoroww." Qrow said as he walked off.

"Who?" Ren asked.

"Someone important." Qrow replied. Not wanting to ask anymore questions, or waste any more time, Ren simply nodded and opened the door to his room. He then sees in his peripheral vision, the wolf from earlier. It had followed him inside after he took his eyes off of him. Ren rolled his eyes as the wolf got closer.

"You must really like me don't you. Okay, come on in." Ren said. The wolf goes inside and Ren follows behind.

His team was already fast asleep. Ruby had taken one bed, Nora had taken the other. Jaune had fell asleep in a chair facing a table with a piece of paper underneath where his head is.

Ren walks over to him and takes him out of the chair and rests him on the other bed. He then looks at the paper Jaune's head was on and sees that he was writing a letter to his family. He feel asleep in the middle of it. Ren couldn't help but smile.

He walks over to the last bed and gets under the covers. Before he could close his eyes, he makes eye contact with the wolf. He seemed to be begging.

"- **Sighs** \- Hop on." Ren said. The wolf hops onto the foot of Ren's bed, makes himself comfortable and curls into a ball. Ren places his head on the pillow and proceeds to close his eyes.

 _'Find a way to control it, before it controls you.'_ Those words were the last thing he thought of before he closed his eyes.

That was a big mistake.

((Dream sequence))

Ren found himself waking up in what looked like, Mistral, only different. Very different. First of all, it was engulfed in flames. Second, grimm were everywhere. And third. His team was nowhere to be found.

"Jaune!" He called as he grabbed his StormFlower.

"Ruby!" He called. That's when he heard grunting. He runs in the direction in which he hears it. All the while, having a scared look on his face. He turns the corner and sees a frightening sight.

A winged creature, holding his childhood best friend off the ground, by the face.

"Nora!" Ren yelled. The winged creature looked at him and a wide grin appeared on its face. It tosses Nora off to the side and faces Ren. Ren gets into his fighting stance before he realized something.

The winged creature was him. The version of him he saw in the mirror earlier. This was very bad. Even worse, he found himself not being able to wake up.

This was a battle for control of his body. Him, vs. his subconcious.

Mirror Ren goes into his own fighting stance. It was different from Ren's. Mirror Ren had his knees slightly bent with his right hand up and his left hand down, over his knee. His left sighed facing Ren.

[Play- Most Wonderous Battle Music Ever- Power of Will]

The two opponents looked at one another, waiting for the other to make the first move. After nine seconds, Mirror Ren got impatient and dashed forward.

Mirror Ren runs at Ren with incredible speed. Ren began to shoot at him, but he dashed from side to side, avoiding the shots.

Upon getting close, Mirror Ren throws a swift left punch, catching Ren offguard. Mirror Ren follows up with a backflip kick, in which his human counterpart dodges. Upon landing on the ground, Mirror Ren looks up to see a Reverse Roundhouse kick aimed at his head. He effortlessly catches it and throws Ren over his shoulder. Ren fires off a few bullets mid air as he landed on his feet. Mirror Ren blocks the bullets using his wings. Ren runs towards him firing his guns. Mirror Ren used his arm to block the bullets going for his face. Ren slashes both StormFlowers across at his opponent. Mirror Ren dodges to the side. Ren tries to attack with the same technique, but Mirror Ren deflects them. The two then began to attack in hand to hand combat.

At one point, Mirror Ren kicks Ren back and attacks with roundhouse, reverse roundhouse combo, which were indeed, blocked. The two of them then collide with a punch. Ren's StormFlower absorbed the shock of his attack. Mirror Ren looked as if he enjoyed it. Then, he got an idea.

Mirror Ren and Ren both slide back a little, Ren kicks at Mirror Ren, but he backflips and avoids it. He then attacks with a two punches, that Ren blocked, but follows up with a claw slash across Ren's chest. Ren spins back and looks at the damage.

Four claw marks had pierced through his tailcoat, shirt, and his flesh. Meaning it went through his aura.

He looks back up to see Mirror Ren flying in the air. Then out of nowhere, a laser beam came flying off his head. It hit the ground first and as Mirror Ren lifted his head up to aim it at Ren, Ren sideflips to the side and avoids the beam. It was then that Ren noticed a vertical eye on Mirror Ren's forehead that shot the powerful beam out.

If Mirror Ren hadn't shot the ground first, Ren probably wouldn't have a head anymore.

Mirror Ren then spins like a torpedo and flies downward on an angle as Ren fired more shots at him. He then swoops upward and grabs his human form by the neck with his right hand and lifts him into the air.

While in the air, Mirror Ren flies downward, pointing Ren towards the ground and slams him into it. Large chunks of the ground came flying into the air, and Ren had let go of his StormFlower. Mirror Ren then throws Ren into the air and as Ren came back down, he kicks him in the torso, sending him flying towards his friends.

He tumbles and rolls next to Nora. He lifts himself to his hands and knees and looks at her. She was beaten, bloody in the torso, and bruised. His bestfriend since childhood was nearly dead, and it was that thing that nearly killed her.

He is soon interrupted by Mirror Ren grabbing him by the neck and lifting him off the ground. Ren looked in anger and fear as Mirror Ren looked with amusement.

Ren felt the need to look down, so he did. When he did he saw his feet begin to dissolve into dust. Starting with his toes, slowly moving up to his feet.

He was dissappearing. Mirror Ren was taking over. Ren used his eyes to look back at who he was leaving behind.

Ruby.

Jaune.

And Nora.

[Play- Most Epic Music Ever: The Wolf and The Moon]

He couldn't lose them. He couldn't leave everyone behind. He couldn't lose this fight. He had to control it, before it could control him.

"I won't-" Ren started as he reached for his father's dagger.

"-let you-" Ren continued as he grabbed his father's dagger. Mirror Ren noticed it, but it was too late.

"-CONTROL ME!" Ren shouted as he brought the dagger across Mirror Ren's left eye. A black mist exits the eye as he stumbled back and lets go of Ren. Ren lands on one knee as his feet rematerializes back on to him. He then stands up to look at Mirror Ren who looks back at him.

"I will not leave my friends behind. I will not submit to you. I will not lose this fight!" Ren shouted as he ran forward. Mirror Ren kick at Ren's torso and follow up with a jump kick, but Ren blocks and kicks him into the air. As Mirror Ren was in the air, Ren slashs his torso and then spin kicks him back. Mirror Ren uses his wings to recover and fly back towards his opponent.

Mirror Ren does a downward axe kick. Ren rolls forward to avoid it. As he stood on his feet and faced Mirror Ren. Ren then dodges an axe kick by dodging the first kick up, and then dashing backwards to avoid the kick down. However, by doing so, he allowed Mirror Ren to quickly dash behind him and kick him into the air with a double kick. While in the air, Mirror Ren hits Ren with an uppercut which juggles Ren into the air, and then hits Ren with a back kick, sending Ren flying back. Ren springs to his feet as Mirror Ren charges at him. Mirror Ren throws a side kick to which Ren spins out of the way of and counters with a jab.

Ren quickly follows up with a leg sweep, knocking Mirror Ren off of his feet and follows that up with an upward kick. Sending Mirror Ren into the air again. Mirror Ren flaps his wings again and flies toward Ren. He lands on his feet before reaching Ren and throws two punches. Ren dodges them both. Mirror Ren throws a roundhouse his, but Ren ducks underneath it. Mirror Ren uses the same foot to reverse roundhouse, but Ren ducked under that too. Mirror Ren then flies into the air and disappeared. Ren listens for his opponent as well as use his eyes to look around.

Mirror Ren appears behind him in an attempt to sneak attack him. But Ren dodges out of the way and blocks a follow up kick with a pulse of his aura. Mirror Ren slashes his claw at Ren but Ren backflips away. As he got to his feet he saw Mirror Ren with his head down and his arms over his head in an x formation. He was about to shoot another laser beam. This time, Ren was ready.

Mirror Ren shoots the beam, and Ren brought up a strong outer aura shield that blocked the beam. It was very powerful. When the beam was done, Ren saw that Mirror Ren still had his eyes closed, and stumbled a little. This gave Ren an idea.

Mirror Ren opens his eyes to see that Ren was no longer in front of him. Thinking he had obliterated the Lotus Ninja he smirks.

It disappeared when he felt a tap on his shoulder, prompting him to turn around.

Directly into dagger to the torso. Followed by a kick to his chest, sending him flying back.

The black mist flows out of Mirror Ren's body and into the air. Ren walks over to Mirror Ren and looks at him. With dagger in hand.

"I stay in control." Ren said bringing his dagger up, ready to deliver the final blow. But a smirk from Mirror Ren stopped that. The thing is, it wasn't evil. It was almost friendly.

"I will return." Mirror Ren said as he slowly turned into smoke. Ren lowers his arm, and drops the dagger. He sighs.

"I'll be ready when you do." Ren said.

(( **Dream Sequence over** ))

Ren wakes up and sits up. As he sat up, he looked at the mirror to he that the dragon ink was disappearing from his face. He sighs and goes back to sleep. It was still even too early for him to be awake. But at least he could sleep knowing he won the battle.

Now the question was, would he lose the war?

Only time would tell, but he will be ready.

(())

 **Short chapter I know, but this was a very difficult one to type. I hope you enjoyed it.**

 **And be sure to vote, what do you want the wolf's name to be?**

 **Achilles or Lotus.**

 **And also leave feedback on the chapter. Until next time, I'm out.**


	4. Sisterly Reunion (Harem vote)

Chapter 4: Sisterly Reunion (Update)

 _ **A/N: This is the updated version because I accidentally left out the ending.**_

Salem was in the meeting room, sitting down at the head of the table. She hears the doors being unlatched. She looks up to see Tyrian walking inside.

"Um... My queen. Kobura is here." He said. Salem shot a blank expression before gesturing him to let them in. Tyrian leaves the room and returns with Kobura and Rajak.

"Kobura." Salem said.

"Salem. Long time no see." Kobura said. Ironic coming from someone who was blind.

Kobura walked towards a chair and took a seat. Rajak gave Tyrian an evil smile. Tyrian growls in response.

"What do I owe the pleasure of you being here?" Salem asked. Kobura faced Salem and smirked.

"We have found someone strong enough to have partial control of the Yami no tenshi." Kobura said. Salem, and Tyrian remain quiet from shock.

"Who is this person?" Salem asked.

"According to the conversation Marc overheard, his name is Lie Ren. After further research, we find out that he was a student at Beacon Academy. He was a member of team JNPR, but after the fall of his comrade, Pyrrha Nikos, he joined Ruby Rose on her journey to Mistral." Kobura explained. Tyrian grits his teeth at the mention of Ruby's name.

"Did you say, Ruby Rose?" Salem asked.

"Yes. Rajak and I encountered him in the woods when I was trying to give my proposition to Raven." Kobura said. He lifts up his left arm, which was cut off at the elbow.

"As you can see, she didn't bother to listen." Kobura said.

"You said he has partial control over the Yami no tenshi?" Salem asked.

"Yes. The Yami no tenshi has taken full control over his subconcious, but he managed to keep it from controlling him." Kobura said. Salem processed what she was told.

"He could prove to be a valuable asset to us. I request that you bring him to me." Salem said. Kobura only chuckles and places his feet on the table.

"Now Salem, you've known me for a long time. You should know that this isn't how it works." Kobura said. Tyrian growls silently.

"Very well. What is it you want in return?" Salem asked.

"You know what I want Salem." Kobura said. He takes his feet off the table and faced Salem.

"I want the location of the winter maiden." Kobura said. Salem sighed in frustration.

"You know I can't do that."

"Then you and I have nothing to talk about." Kobura said standing up.

"I can.. I can bring him to you my Queen. That Lie Ren was one of the comrades who fought along side Ruby. The Lotus will be no different in terms of combat." Tyrian butted in. Rajak couldn't help but laugh.

"Oh that's rich Tyrian. You managed to lose your tail by the hands of her. Are you ready to become a disappointment once again?" He asked. Tyrian growled and activated his wrist blades.

"Why don't you come over here and say that!" Tyrian shouted. 

"Enough Tyrian!" Salem commanded. Tyrian settles down and deactivates his wrist blades.

"Kobura, I'm afraid at this current moment I can't give you the location of the Winter maiden, but I'll consider it for the time being." Salem said. Kobura stands up and walks towards the door.

"If you change your mind, you know where to find me." Kobura said as he and Rajak walked out the door. As the door closed, Salem seemed to look in disbelief.

"The desendant of Ketsueki Ren lives among us." Salem said. She looks at Tyrian and Tyrian bows.

"Mistress, I'm very sorry for my previous failure. It's true, I am a disappointment. But I beg of you, give me another chance. I promise, I won't disappoint you again." Tyrian begged. Salem was silent for a minute before standing up.

"Come with me." She said. Not needing to be told twice, Tyrian quickly gets to his feet and follows Salem.

(())

Ren was still sound asleep as the sun slowly began to make its ascent. His newfound friend was already awake, and wanted him awake too.

With his wet nose, the wolf brushes against Ren. Ren didn't want to wake up.

"Nora, I'm not ready to get up yet. Give me five more minutes." Ren pleaded. The wolf continued to brush against Ren's face.

"I'll make your pancakes soon, give me some time." Ren said. The wolf then hops onto the bed and pushes his paws against Ren's side. This made Ren realize that it wasn't Nora. He sits up and opens his eyes. He sees his new friend panting happily.

"You are one strange wolf. I take it you're hungry?" Ren asked, the wolf wags its tail in response.

"- **Sigh** \- Come on, I'll make you something to eat." Ren said as he got out of the bed.

A few minutes in the kitchen and Ren had just finished making pancakes for his team and some scrambled eggs.

He places the plate of eggs on the floor and the wolf begain to eat without missing a beat.

"Maybe I should name you before Nora decides to. Trust me, you will not like her pet names." Ren said. The wolf looked at Ren and wagged it's tail. Ren saw that the wolf's eyes were pink, like his. It reminded him of a lotus.

"What do you think of the name Lotus?" Ren asked. The wolf seem to bark in agreement. Ren smirked and pet his new friend's head.

"Alright Lotus, come on." Ren said as he took the plates, places them on the kitchen table, and walked out of the kitchen. Upon opening the door, Nora dashed into the room.

Ren sighed as he saw her devour the large stack of pancakes.

"Ruby, Jaune. You may hurry up and eat before Nora takes the last of the pancakes." Ren said. Jaune was the first to spring out of the bed.

"Nora! Save some for me!" Jaune said running into the kitchen. Ruby only slowly got out of the bed and stretched. She rubs her eyes and look at Ren.

"Morning Ren." She said.

"Morning Ruby." Ren said. "You hungry?" Ren asked.

"A little." Ruby said. Ren looked into the kitchen and saw that Nora was eating, no. Inhaling a pancake from her plate.

"You've got about five seconds before Nora finishes her plate and moves on to yours." Ren said. Ruby smiles and walks to the kitchen. Before going in through the doorway she looks at Ren.

"Are you feeling better Ren? You seemed a bit out of it last night." Ruby asked.

"Don't worry Ruby, I'll be fine." Ren said. Ruby gave him an unsure look.

"Are you sure? You looked like you had a lot on your mind last night." Ruby asked.

"I did, and to be honest, I didn't get that many answers, but I'll be alright for the time being." Ren said. Ruby's unsure look didn't leave her face.

"Ren, you know you can talk to us if something's bothering you." Ruby asked. Ren was going to just brush it off and say nothing's wrong, but soon realized, he would have to tell his team sooner or later. When to tell them was the question.

"Not now." Ren said, Ruby walked into the kitchen to see Nora had eaten all of the pancakes already. Jaune was lucky enough to eat some of the pancakes before Nora ate them all. Ren sighed.

"Wanna order takeout?" Ren asked.

"Sure." Ruby answered.

Jaune looks at the doorway and sees Ren, Ruby and a wolf standing there. He nearly disregarded it before realizing there's a wolf in the room. He stands up in a near panic.

"Guys! Why is there a wolf in here?!" Jaune yelled. Ruby and Ren both look at Lotus and see him sitting there. Ruby was startled and hid behind Ren.

"Don't worry, this is Lotus. He's friendly." Ren said petting Lotus's head. He pants in response. Ruby moves from behind Ren and looked at Lotus.

"Ren! That's a Wolf! Why is it in here?!" Jaune asked. Using his shield to hide behind it.

"He kind of followed me here." Ren said. Lotus looked at Ren, who looked back. Ren then uses his head to gesture towards Jaune. Lotus walks over to Jaune.

"Really? Wow! That could be your new nickname. Ren, the pancake making Wolf taming ninja! It's perfect!" Nora said with a wide grin on her face. Ren shook his head, Lotus sniff Jaune's shield, and Ruby giggled a little bit.

"Don't encourage her please." Ren pleaded to Ruby.

Lotus got very close to Jaune, and Jaune made the mistake of trying to force it back by thrusting his shield towards him. Lotus did not appreciate this gesture and grabbed the end of Jaune's shield.

As Lotus tugged on the bottom of Jaune's shield as Jaune tried to take it back. Now the two were playing tug of war. Jaune desperately tried to get his shield back. Nora and Ruby were amused by this.

"Hey! Give it back!" Jaune said. He knew he was stronger than the wolf (probably), but he didn't want to be too forceful. He might, A: Hurt the wolf, or B: Make it angry.

"You can do it, uh..." Ruby looks at Ren. " _What's his name again?"_ She asked.

"Lotus." Ren answered, deciding to enjoy the little game of tug of war as well.

"Come on Lotus! You can do it!" Ruby cheered. Jaune looked at Ruby with shock.

"You're rooting for the Wolf!?" Jaune asked. Lotus pulls a little harder, nearly dragging Jaune off the chair.

"I'll root for you Jaune. Come on Jaune! You can do it!" Nora said.

The tug of war continued for about three more minutes before a knocking was on the door.

"Lotus." Ren said. Lotus lets go of the shield and walked towards Ren. Ren walks toward the door and looks through the peep hole. He sees Qrow.

"Hey kids, open up. I got someone you need to meet." He said. Ren opens the door and Qrow gestures to someone to come here. Team RNJR plus one waited and soon saw a tan skinned teenaged male walk into the room with a nervous look on his face.

"Um... Hello." The boy said.

"Everyone, this is Oscar. Oscar, this is Ren." Qrow said gesturing to Ren, who does a simple wave.

"Nora." He gestures to Nora who waves excitedly.

"Jaune." Jaune only waves.

"And Ruby." Ruby waves with an awkward smile.

"Hello." Oscar said. After a bit of a minor awkward silence, Ren decided to ask a question.

"If I may ask, why are we meeting him?" Ren asked, making sure to not sound to brash. Qrow looks at Oscar.

"Should you tell them pipsqueak, or should I." Qrow asked.

"Please stop calling me that." Oscar said.

" _You can tell them. Go on."_ Ozpin's voice said. Ren's eyes went wide for a second.

"Was that, Ozpin?" Ren asked. Qrow and Oscar's eyes go wide.

"You can hear him?" Oscar asked.

" _Wait, he can hear me?"_ Ozpin asked.

"Yes I can. Where is he?" Ren asked. The rest of team RNJR was confused, as was Qrow.

" _I merged my soul with Oscar's._ " Ozpin said. Ren was surprised by this. As was both Ozpin and Oscar.

"Wait. What's going on?" Ruby asked.

"I can hear Ozpin." Ren said at the same time as Oscar saying, 'He can hear Ozpin.'

" _Lie Ren, how is it that you can hear me?_ " Ozpin asked.

"I don't know. I just can." Ren replied.

"What? He can hear Ozpin?" Jaune asked.

"I thought Ozpin was gone." Nora stated.

"Isn't he?" Ruby asked.

"Well, more or less. He's kind of with Oscar here." Qrow said.

"What? How?" Ruby asked.

"Well, Ozpin's soul sort of lingers around. He managed to merge his with Oscars here." Qrow explained.

"Wait. Ozpin's soul is combined with Oscar's?" Ruby asked. Oscar nods his head.

" _Lie Ren. You can hear me, right?_ " Ozpin asked.

"For about the third time today yes. But how?" Ren asked.

"I thought Ozpin was gone. He can't be here." Jaune said out of confusion, more so looking for an answer rather than doubting what he just heard.

"How is that possible?" Ren asked Ozpin, unaware that he had unintentionally agreed with Jaune.

"Yea, how is that possible?" Jaune asked. Ren was about to say something, but disregarded it as he still needed the answer.

"I told you, Ozpin's soul merged with Oscar's here. But, Ren, I don't understand. You can hear Ozpin? Did Ozpin merge his soul with you too?" Qrow asked.

" _I cannot divid my soul into fragments, how Ren is able to here me is a mystery._ " Ozpin explained.

"He said that his soul doesn't have the ability to divide into fragments. He has no clue how Ren could hear him." Oscar explained. Everyone was still confused. Then Ruby looked at Oscar.

"If Ozpin is really with you, tell us something only he would know." Ruby respectfully requested. Oscar stopped to listen to what Ozpin had to say.

"You sure?" Oscar asked. Ren heard all of it, but would preferred to keep his mouth shut.

"You were accepted into Beacon Academy two years before anyone else." Oscar said. He then looked at Jaune.

"You faked your transcripts to get into the school. Ozpin knew the whole time." Oscar said. Both Jaune and Ruby looked at each other and then back at Oscar.

"I'm convinced." Ruby said.

"Me too." Jaune said.

"So why is he here?" Nora asked.

"I'm supposed to meet with Lionheart. Something about a Relic." Oscar explained. Team RNJR all look at Qrow, then back at Oscar.

" _The relic is in danger._ " A voice said in Ren's head. It was a echoey demonic voice. It hurt his ears, and his head. As a result, he held his head in pain.

"Ren, what's wrong?" Nora asked, showing concern.

" _Save the relic. It's not in the right hands._ " The voice said again. He wasn't ready to tell his team yet. It wasn't the right time.

"Nothing, just a bad headache." Ren said. The wolf whimpers as Ren shook his head.

"When did you guys get a wolf?" Qrow asked.

"That's Lotus, he's Ren's new pet." Ruby said, she still looked at Ren out of concern.

"Come with me, we need to see Lionheart." Qrow said. He and the others began to walk out of the room, but Ruby grabs Ren's arm the second they walked out of the room.

"Uncle Qrow, go on without us. I need to talk to Ren for a minute." Ruby said. Qrow looks back at Ruby.

"Try not to take too long." Qrow said. Ruby drags Ren off, and Nora looks back at them with a suspicious look on her face. Lotus followed them as they left.

Ruby, Lotus and Ren walk out of the hotel and Ruby immediately turns to look at Ren.

"Ren, what's going on?" Ruby asked. Before Ren could say anything else, Ruby spoke up again. "You've been acting strange lately, and we're getting worried. Is this about Kuroyuri?"

Ren was silent for a moment, Ruby's worried look didn't leave for a second.

"- **sigh** \- I knew I'd have to tell you eventually." Ren started. Ruby was ready to listen.

"Yesterday, I got into a minor altercation. I was in the forest and I was thrown into a fight. The fighters were too much for me, and I was almost killed." Ren said. Ruby was shocked at this statement.

"Ren. What happened?" Ruby asked.

"I saw a fight one day and I observed from the bushes. One of the fighters noticed me and attacked me. I was fighting for my life, but it wasn't enough. They were too much for me." Ren said.

"Then what happened?" Ruby asked.

"One of them, possessed my subconcious. It was gonna possess the rest of me. It was last night when I prevented it from doing so."

"Ren." Ruby said.

"It said it would be back. And I don't know if I could prevent it this time."

Suddenly, Ren felt a pair of arms wrap around his torso and a head on his chest. He looks down to see Ruby hugging him. It felt strange to recieve a hug from someone who wasn't his childhood friend. It was a good kind of strange.

"I'm so sorry Ren." Ruby said, crying softly. Ren returns the hug and rubbed her back to comfort her. "If I was there, maybe I could've- I could've-" She tried to say in between snuffles.

"Ruby, There's nothing you could've done. It's okay." Ren said.

"If I was there, I-"

"Would've been another target. I'd rather it have been just me, than me and someone else." Ren comforted. Ruby continued to cry a little. This caused Ren to activate his semblance. Negating the negative feelings Ruby was feeling.

Ruby inhales and she was now feeling better, and had looked at Ren.

"Ren. We're a team. Next time something's wrong, please just tell-" She suddenly stopped talking as she looked at Ren's face. The black dragon ink was on his face and it was slowly disappearing.

"R-ren?"

"Don't worry. It won't be an issue. At least, not for a while." Ren explained. Ruby could only smile for the time being. Suddenly, Ruby's stomach made a growling sound.

"I'm gonna guess you're hungry." Ren asked. Ruby only nodded. Before the two could walk off, they hear a camera shutter sound followed by a flash. They both look to see a certain blonde haired brawler with a new yellow right arm.

"Now, that's what I call a picture perfect moment." She said.

"Yang?" Ruby asked in surprise. She then realized she was still hugging Ren. She immediately lets go, and without a second thought runs over and her sister and glomps her.

"Yang! I missed you so much!" Ruby said. Yang hugs her sister back. Ren looks at Yang and got flashbacks.

" _Yang is my daughter._ " Raven's voice replied in his head. Ren could only imagine how Yang would be thrilled to know about her mother, but... Raven gave him trust, and he can't just betray it. After all, she said she would be keeping an eye on him.

"I missed you too Ruby." Yang said. She hugs her sister back and looks at Ren. Before she could say anything, she felt, and heard Ruby's stomache growl.

"Whoa. Someone's hungry." Yang said. Ruby releases and holds her hands behind her back.

"Oh, me and Ren were about to get something to eat." Ruby said innocently. Yang's face became plastered with a smug smile.

"Aww, my little sister's first date. I'm glad I'm here, or I would've missed it."

"What?" Ren asked confused.

"What?! No, Yang it's not- it!" Ruby stuttered with her face as red as her cape.

"I didn't know you'd pull a date so fast. Although, does Nora know about this?" Yang asked Ren.

"I assure you Yang, it's not like that. I'm just getting Ruby something to eat." Ren confirmed.

"Oh, you're just no fun." Yang said as she stuck out her tongue. "You know, I hadn't had a lot to eat yet, mind if I join you guys?"

"Oh, sure. Is that okay Ren?" Ruby asked.

"Gotta talk to your boyfriend first I guess." Yang said, causing Ruby to blush again. Ren didn't find anything wrong with Yang joining them. Ruby and Yang should catch up on things.

" _She is watching._ " The demon voice said. This caught him offguard, but he felt the presence of someone. He turned around to see a raven flying from a rooftop onto a market sign. The raven then looks at him.

The voice in his head telling him 'She is watching'. The raven 'looking' at him. Ren soon put two and two together. That raven, was Raven. She really was keeping her eye on him. Not that he was gonna go back on his word, but now she knew he was there.

"Ren?" Ruby called. She then followed his line of sight and looks up in time to see the raven fly way.

"Let's go." Ren said walking in front of the two sisters. Lotus soon joined him by his side.

Yang and Ruby follow behind, and Yang decided to have a little chat.

"So when did your boyfriend get a wolf?" Yang asked.

"I have no clue. Sometime last night." Ruby answered before realizing what her sister said. "And he's not my boyfriend."

Yang could only chuckle at Ruby's embarassment.

(())

Oscar was behind everyone else as they walked to Lionheart's office.

" _Oscar._ " Ozpin called.

"Yes Ozpin?" Oscar answered.

" _I think I may have figured out why Ren was able to hear me._ " Ozpin said. Oscar was curious.

"How?" Oscar asked.

" _I will, but first I need to ask._ " Ozpin started. After a few seconds, spoke up again." _Do you know about the Yami no tenshi?_ "

(())

Salem leads Tyrian to a black liquid pool. Salem stands next to it and gestures to the pool.

"Place your tail into the pool." Salem said. Tyrian walks over to the pool and places his tail into it. Suddenly, he began to feel a large wave of pain.

"A-ARGH!" He cried in pain as his tail began to grow bulkier and stronger.

"Remove your tail." Salem ordered. Tyrian did what he was told. He looked at his tail as the black liquid dripped off. His stinger was back.

"Your tail should be stronger now, and possess more venom than before." Salem explained. Tyrian began to laugh with joy.

"Let me tell you this now; this is your last chance. If you don't bring me back the descendant of Ketsueki. You do not come back. Understood?" Salem asked. Tyrian bowed to her.

"I understand my queen."

"Good. Do not fail me again." She said walking out of the room. Tyrian looks at his reflection in the black pool.

"I will not fail you my queen. Oh no. No, in fact, I'll bring them both. The pretty little rose, and the harmless little Lotus. They'll be no match for me." Tyrian said as he rubbed his hands. Imagining the diabolical he would do to get them here. He then started to chuckle. His chuckles then turned into insane laughter. A laughter Emerald and Mercury began to hear.

"You know Em, I think I'm starting to have second thoughts." Mercury said.

"You and me both Merc... You and me both." Emerald replied.

(())

 **AAAAAAANNND THAT'S ALL FOLKS.**

 **Sorry for yelling.**

 **Also, after careful consideration I've decided to make this a Ren x Harem story. and you guys choose who's in it.**

 **But, here are two rules. Weiss isn't allowed, you'll see later.**

 **And no male x male ships. I've got nothing against it, but that's just very uncomfortable to write.**

 **Hope you all enjoy and see you in the next chapter.**


	5. RWBY Reunion part 1

Chapter 5: RWBY Reunion

Blake was looking over the railing of the ship she was on. She had gotten on a ship headed to Mistral, with Sun joining her. She had thought about the conversation she had with her mother before leaving.

(())

"Is that everything? " Kali asked. Blake looked at her mother as she proceeded to zip up her bag.

"Yes mom. That's everything." She said as she looked at her mother. Her mother looked at her with an approving smile.

"Good luck honey. Be careful and safe." Kali said as she walked over to hug her. Blake hugs back.

"I will mom. I won't let you down."

"And let me know if you see some cute boys." Kali teased. Blake blushed and releases the hug.

"Mom!" Blake silently exclaimed.

"Sorry." Kali said. "But if you find any cute boys, I wanna see for myself. So send a picture."

"Mom." Blake said out of embarrassment again. Kali only chuckled and kissed her daughter's forehead.

"Come on Blake, we're gonna miss the ship." Sun warned as he walked out the door. Blake grabbed her bag and walked out of her house. Waving to her parents as she walked with Sun to the docks.

As they walked, Sun looked at Blake with a smile before wrapping his arm around he shoulder.

"This really is starting to look like a journey to the East. Isn't it?" Sun asked. Blake takes his arm off and only groans.

"What? It is. Well, minus the ox." Sun said. Blake could only roll her eyes and kept walking.

(())

Blake hadn't had anything to think about since she got onto the ship. However, one thing manage to drill its way into her brain.

'But if you see any cute boys let me know I wanna see for myself. So send a picture.'

Boys weren't exactly the first or last thing that Blake had on her mind. But thanks to her mother, that thought began to cross her mind.

She began to picture a character from her book. Ninjas of Love. There weren't any pictures with in the book, but the main character had a vivid description that worked well with Blake's imagination.

She soon imagined herself in the arms of a fellow ninja. One who wore green that went well with her black and white attire. He saw him caress his fingers through her hair. His hair was also long. As long as hers in the fact.

She soon saw herself caressing her fingers in his hair.

She was blushing as she pictured all of this in the back of her head. His long hair, his gentle touch, and best of all, those eyes. His majestic, beautiful eyes that were colored a lovely shade of-

"Blake!" Sun's voice called, snapping Blake out of her daydream to look at Sun.

"We're here." Sun said. Blake took a minute to end her blushing state before grabbing her back and following Sun off of the ship.

"Ahh, It's good to be back in my hometown. You're gonna love it here. Trust me." Sun said as he lead the way. He turned around to look at Blake and gesture, 'come on.' When he turned back around, he accidentally bumped into a hooded person, resulting in said person dropping something.

"Oh, whoops sorry." Sun said. He reaches down to pick up whatever it was the person dropped. Only for the person to step on it. Sun looks confused, but soon, the person grabs the item he or she dropped.

"Accidents always happen." The person said. The voice belonged to that of a female. The item she picked up looked like it was a book. She then walks off into the crowd. Sun saw that she had a hyena tail.

She then whistles and clicks her tongue. A hyena's laugh was heard soon followed by paw prints running. Sun turns around to see a hyena walk off the platform and towards the girl. The two walk side-by-side. Son was impressed but still dumbfounded.

Blake walks next to him, resulting in Sun turn into her.

"Soooooo, I think I may have found your long-lost sister. She's got your mysterious nature." Sun said. Blake only rolled her eyes and kept walking. Sun quickly follows her.

"Hey, where you going? I got to show you around town." Sun said.

The hooded woman walks over to a silver haired male who was leaning against the wall.

"Nice to see you again Kim-Ly." He said. The woman takes off her Hood revealing that she had light green eyes and long white hair. On the right side of her hair she had a light green strand of hair.

"Don't get used to it. Kobura has given me new orders." Marc said.

"No nonsense, like always. Okay, what did he say?" Marc asked.

"We can't talk here. Let's go." Kim-Ly said as she walked off. Her hyena follows behind. Marc shrugged his shoulders.

"I didn't even get to tell her my new nickname." Marc said walking after her.

"I was told by Kobura to not refer to you as Xue Zhao." Kim-Ly said looking back at Marc.

"I'm willing to bet Lien he didn't really say that." Marc said as he followed the two.

(())

Jaune and Nora walk out of Lionheart's office. Qrow stayed behind to discuss more with him and Oscar stayed behind to listen. However, Jaune and Nora were given orders to leave the room, after a very confusing meeting.

"That was a little strange." Jaune said. Nora was caught off guard by the statemeny as she was thinking of something else.

"Huh? Oh, yea." She said.

"You okay Nora?" Jaune asked.

"Yea, I'm okay. I was just... thinking." Nora said. Jaune looks at her with a little suspision.

"Hey Jaune?" Nora called.

"Yea Nora?"

"Are Ren and Ruby uh... Together together." Nora asked uncomfortably. This prompted Jaune to look at her with a confused look. He was gonna say no, but froze. He noticed them acting strange before. Heck, Ruby even dragged Ren off to talk about something.

"I don't know. They could be, but I'm sure they aren't. Why?"

"Oh... No reason." Nora said making sure to not seem suspicious. Only for it to work against her. Jaune knew better than to try to call Nora out on it though, because she wouldn't stop talking.

"Let's see if they're doing okay." Jaune said pulling out his scroll and typing in Ren's number.

(())

Ren had lead Ruby and Yang to the outdoor noodle shop he had been to the day before. Ren was sitting in between Ruby and Yang as the shopkeeper came back with three bowls of noodles. He gives them to the three and then gives them chopsticks. Ren took the chopsticks and picked up some of the noodle before looking to his left to see Ruby struggling to hold the chopsticks. Ren puts his in the bowl and decided to show Ruby.

"Like this." Ren said, using his hands to correct the way Ruby was holding the chopsticks. This prompted a blush to appear on the young reaper's face.

"Th-thank you." She said as she began to eat. Yang only smirks at this.

"So, since you two aren't dating, would you mind if I did this?" Yang asked Ruby before placing her head on Ren's shoulder. Ren was caught off guard by this, but said nothing about it. Ruby on the other hand gave an annoyed look and looked away. Ren's scroll began to vibrate. He answers it.

"Hello?" Ren asked.

"Ren, it's Jaune. You and Rubes doing okay?" Jaune asked.

"Yes. We're eating right now. We'll be back soon." Ren said.

"Alright." Jaune said hanging up. Ren puts his scroll away and began to eat. With Yang still on his shoulder.

(())

Weiss' ship made its way to the top of the mountains. The pilot's voice was soon heard on the speaker.

"Ms. Schnee? We're almost at Haven." The pilot said.

"Thank you sir." Weiss said. The pilot puts the radio speaker away and continued flying the cargo ship.

All Weiss could do now was wait for the ride to be over.

Her relaxation was soon cut short as the ship was hit with something. She started to get scared.

"Ms. Schnee! We got trouble, we're going down! Brace for impact!" The pilot said.

On the outside, The cargo ship was being pulled down by a large feline grimm with bat wings and a scorpion tail that wasn't as big as it, but close.

(())

Ren finished his Lo Mein noodles before hearing a very loud crash. Yang and Ruby heard it too, as did the most of the town.

"What was that?" Ren asked.

"No clue." Yang said.

" _Do you require my assistance?"_ The voice in Ren's head asked. Ren just shook it off and grabbed his StormFlower.

"Ren, Yang. See if you can check that out. I'll go get the others." Ruby said. Ren looks at her and nods before running off, with Yang and Lotus following behind.

(())

Ruby makes her way to the hotel to see Jaune and Nora run out of it. Weapons wielded.

"Ruby! What's going on?" Jaune asked.

"I don't know, something happened in the mountains." Ruby said.

"Where's Ren?" Nora asked.

"He's headed to the mountains. Come on." Ruby said as she took out Cresent Rose.

(())

Blake and Sun look towards the forest after hearing a loud boom. They look to see smoke emerge from the trees.

"Sun, go get help!" Blake commanded.

"Got it!" He said running off. Blake runs towards the forest to investigate. Hoping that the White Fang wasn't involved in what just happened.

(())

Weiss was dragging the unconcious pilot away from the crashsite and to safety. They had crashed into the forest and Weiss was worried that grimm would find them.

She drags the pilot behind a tree and checks if he's okay.

Luckily, he was alive. Unluckily, he was still unconcious. Weiss takes her Myrtenaster out of the briefcase and looked around the area.

"I hope help arrives soon." Weiss said to herself.

(())

Ren, Lotus and Yang reached the crash site and saw the damage. There was debris everywhere, ranging from the destroyed crates to the broken pieces of the plane.

"What happened here?" Yang asked. Ren only shrugs his shoulders. Yang was gonna walk forward, but Ren put his arm out and stopped her. However, a slight blush appeared her face as she looked at where Ren put his arm.

"I didn't know you were so forward Ren?" Yang said with a smirk. Ren looks in confusion before seeing that his arm was making contact with her chest. He removes his hand.

"Sorry." Ren said as he walked towards the debris. He investigates the wreckage, trying to find out what happened. He then sees four large claws on the side of the destroyed cargo ship.

"That's a pretty big claw mark. What could've caused this?" Ren asked. Yang walked up behind him.

"A very big grimm." Yang said. Ren continued to look around before hearing Lotus growl bark. Ren looks at Lotus to see that he was leading him somewhere.

"Ren!" Jaune and Nora called.

"Yang!" Ruby called.

"Help!" A voice said. The hunters, plus the wolf hear this and run towards the voice.

(())

Weiss had been surrounded by Beowolves. And there were a lot of them.

Weiss couldn't move from her current position, as it was a risk that the pilot would be hurt. However, there were a lot of them.

Weiss was defending herself from the grimm, before one of them got lucky and knocked Myrtenaster out of her hand, and another one pinned her. She tried to get out of it, but the beowolf was too strong. It brought up its claws, ready to slice her with them. She braced for the pain and but was too scared to close her eyes.

With all his might, Jaune rams into the beowolf shield first and knocks the beowolf off of her.

Ren jumps over the rock and shot two beowolves, one to the left and one to the right. He then slices the beowolf in front of him upon landing on the ground.

Nora runs in wielding Magnhild and knocks a beowolf into another one.

Yang and Ruby looked at each other and nod before combining their firepower to dispose of more of them.

Jaune slices the head off of one beowolf and Another one appears to his right. He spins around to block it with his shield and then jams his sword into its chest.

Ruby uses her scythe to kill last beowolf within the area. The hunters looked around the area to confirm that there were no more grimm. Everyone but Ren put there weapons away. Ren instead looked off to the left.

Jaune looked at Weiss.

"Weiss, are you alright?" Jaune asked.

"What happened?" Ruby asked.

"Something dragged use down. Something big. I'm okay, but I'm not to sure about the pilot." Weiss said. Jaune walked over to check his pulse. He felt a heart beat.

"The pilot's alive. Let's try to get back into town before more grimm arrive." Jaune said.

"Yea, we can catch up somewhere that doesn't have the grimm painting a target on our backs." Yang said. Jaune nods and picks up the pilot before looking at Ren.

"Ren. Come on. Before more grimm arrive." Jaune said. Ren was silent for a few seconds before gripping his StormFlower tighter.

"It's already here." Ren said. Confused looks were exchanged before a grimm nearly the size of the cargo ship came into view. The grimm that brought it down. The manticore grimm.

(())

Blake was running in the forest trying to follow the smoke. A roar caused her to slow down and stop. The roar was loud, menacing and recognizable.

"Manitcore." She said.

(())

 **AAAAAAND CLIFFHANGER**

 **Hahahahahahahaha, an Evil author I am.**

 **School recently started, so writting might be limited.**

 **I also decided to add Ilia to the story as an essential character.**

 **Shall she join the Harem, or no.**

 **Be sure to like, review and fav.**

 **BTW, Raven and the Yami no tenshi play a bigger role in the next chapter.**

 **I'll also add team CFVY if you'd like.**

 **Until next time. I'm out.**


	6. RWBY Reunion part 2 Yami no tenshi

Chapter 6 : RWBY Reunion part 2/ The Yami no tenshi.

 **A/N: Please leave some feedback, I'd appreciate that.**

(A few minutes earlier)

"Okay Lionheart. The kids are gone. Now, tell us what we need to hear." Qrow said. Lionheart, amale with a light brown skin complexion, short brown hair, and hazel eyes, looked at Qrow. Lionheart also had a lion tail, showing that he was a faunus.

"She knows." Lionheart said."What?" Qrow asked. "She knows Qrow. I just got done talking to one of her informants. She knows the relic is here." Lionheart said. Qrow was stunned. Oscar was confused.

"I'm sorry but, who is she? And what relic does she know is here?" Oscar asked. Qrow looked at Oscar.

"Ozpin will inform you, but what I wanna know is how does she know where the relic is? Nobody knew it was here." Qrow said.

"Oscar, tell Lionheart that Salem is only a fragment of our current problem." Ozpin said.

"Her name is Salem? How is she not the current issue?"Oscar asked. " _Remember when I asked if you knew about the Yami no tenshi? Well that's how Ren heard subconscious is possessed by it. And if he goes into its form, it might attempt to take over his body again._ " Ozpin explained.

"What do you mean again? When was the first time?"

 _"Oscar, I will have time to explain, but not with that potential threat. You need to tell the now_." Ozpin sternly said. It was that tone of voice that made him scared of whatever this, Yami no Tenshi was.

"Umm... Qrow, Lionheart?" He called. Lionheart and Qrow looked at Oscar.

"Ozpin said that Salem's knowledge of the relic's location is the least of our problems." He said. Lionheart and Qrow look at each other, then back at Oscar, waiting for him to continue.

"He said that Ren had his subconscious possessed by the Yami no tenshi."

"What?" Qrow and Lionheart asked in surprise. It was then when a loud crash was heard.

"What was that?" Qrow asked.

"Shit, it's back!" Lionheart said.

"W-what's back?" Oscar asked."The Manticore! It brought down another ship probably!"

"Let's go then before it reaches town!" Qrow said.

(Back to present time)

The Manticore let out a loud roar towards the six hunters. Ren, being the only one that was ready, shot at the Grimm. The Manticore turned its attention to Ren and slashed at him. Ren jumps over the claw and lands on his feet.

"Get the pilot to safety!" Ren said as he ran and show the Manticore, drawing its attention.

"On it!" Yang said as she picked up the pilot and moved him. Ruby looked at the Manticore as it tried to attack Ren. But Ren was too fast for it to hit. Ruby decided to join in and shoot at it with Crescent Rose.

The Manticore looked at Ruby and roared. It then swiped its tail as Ren ran behind it, causing it to hit him. The Manticore runs towards Ruby and slashes at her. She jumps into the air and shot at the Manticore, sending her further into the air. She wasn't expecting the Manticore to jump up and swat her out of the air.

As Ruby was knocked onto the ground, she landed next to Yang, who placed the pilot against atree. This angered Yang. Yang looks at the Manticore and her eyes turned red. She runs and shoots herself towards the Manticore. The Manticore swipes her towards the ground. As she was on the ground the Manticore opened its mouth and an orange light began forming in its mouth. It was about to set her on fire.

Before the Manticore could set her on fire, Nora fired a shot into its mouth. The Manticore stumbles back.

"Haha, I got it!" Nora cheered. The Manticore then charges at her. Nora's pupils shrank. Yang recovers and began to shot rounds at the Manticore. Nora joined in, but it did Manticore brought its paw down in an attempt to crush one of them. They both move out of the way as its paw came down. Yang was gonna take advantage of this, but Weiss beat her to it.

Jumping onto the Manticore's paw, she runs up to its face. Mytenaster in hand. However, as she got close, the Manticore threw her into the air and as she was coming down, opened its mouth. Ready to swallow her whole.

Ren's StormFlower came flying at its face, cutting it across the snout. It growled in pain as it turned to Ren. Weiss spawns a glyph and uses it to jump onto the Manticore's back. Ren's StormFlower flies back into his hand as the Manticore turned to him. Jaune runs over to its paw and slices at it. The Manticore lifts said paw and attempts to crush Jaune with it. Lotus charges into Jaune to push him out of the way as the Manticore made a crater where Jaune used to stand.

Now at the Manticore's under belly, Jaune gets and shoots at the Manticore, gaining its attention once again. But this time, instead of running to him, it used its scorpion tail to attack. Extending its tail, the Manticore attacks with lighting speed. Ren only barely manages to move out of the way. Ren grabs onto the tail and began to shoot it. The Manticore tries to shake him off.

Weiss repositions her footing and stabs her mytenaster through the Manticore's back.

Jaune jumps up and cuts the Manticore's underbelly. The Manticore growls in pain as it threw Ren into Yang, who was looking for a weak point.

As the Manticore threw off Ren, it used its tail to grab Weiss, slam her into the ground throw her into a tree. It then backs up and raises to its hind legs. Jaune runs with Lotus behind him. As theManticore misses crushing those two it quickly swipes its paw at them. Jaune kicks Lotus out of the way as he brought up his shield to block the swipe. It still knocked him off his feet.

Ruby uses her semblance to close in onto the Manticore. She manages to get close enough to its face to shoot at it. However, after shooting three times, she was swatted out of the air again. And was separated from her scythe. This Manticore was as fast as it was big, and it was pretty damn big.

Ren stands up and looks at the Manticore, not noticing his shoulder and forehead was sees Nora shooting at the Manticore from the tree before it threw his tail at her, knocking herinto a tree. It then turned her attention to Ruby. Ren acted fast as Yang attempted to stand on her feet.

Ruby runs over to her Scythe and upon picking it up, was pushed to the ground and felt wind goover her head.

Ren was knocked with enough force to knock him through a tree. Ruby looked up to see that, as did Nora.

"Ren!" They both shouted. Yang began firing at the beast. But like the other shots, was ineffective. The Manticore then blew fire at her. Prompting her to dodge out of the struggles to her hands and knees to see the Manticore look at her. The Manticore then opened its mouth and blew fire out at her.

Jaune stepped in front of her in just the nick of time. Shield in hand he blocks the fire that was gonna over take him and Weiss. After it was done, Jaune threw his sword and by sheer luck, it impaled the Manticore's left eye. This angered it into slashing Jaune away.

"Jaune!" Weiss called out. Jaune's head hit a thick branch and he falls onto the ground face first. Hurting him looks up to see the sword sticking out of the Manticore's eye.

"Ruby!" She called. Ruby looks at her. "I need a boost!" She nods and readies her Scythe. Nora jumps onto the Scythe and spins around. She fires a shot, which sped up the spin and sent Nora towards the Manticore. The Manticore, moves its head out of Nora's path, prompting her to miss. She instead heads straight for the tail, which had its point facing her.

She was about to head for it neck first, but another force knocked her off the hitting the ground, Nora gets up to see Blake running towards the Manticore. Only to be knocked back just as quick.

"We barely even put a scratch on it. It's too strong!" Nora exclaimed.

"We can't give up. If we lose it'll attack the city." Blake said.

Ren went his hands and knees and looked at the others. The Manticore was still winning and his team were not able to damage it enough. As he looked, he felt a burning sensation come from his left arm, the left side of his face, and his back. He gritted his teeth in pain as he felt the ink appear. He tried to suppress it, but it was too much. It overtook him.

Seconds later, black wings ripped through his shirt and tailcoat. Dragon markings appeared on his right arm and a sideways third eye appeared on his forehead. He stands to his feet, slouched over. His grits of pain soon turned into a laugh. Two of his teeth were now fangs and he looked at his hands, which had formed into claws, before clenching them.

Ruby was on the ground next to her Scythe. Yang was next to her, clenching her side and holding Ruby's hand.

Nora and Blake were on the ground, both straining to even look up as the Manticore approached Ruby. Too injured to get up.

Weiss looked in horror as she comforted the unconscious, Fallen Jaune.

The Manticore opened its mouth and got ready to eat one of the two sisters.

"At least I got to see my little sister again." Yang said. The Manticore lunges for the kill, but didn'tget it.

A black blur rushes past Ruby and Yang, and straight into the Manticore's mouth. It then goes through the back of its head, leaving a big hole.

Yang and Ruby look in shock and confusion as the Manticore fell down dead, and began to disintegrated into smoke.

Ruby and Yang look up to see a winged person with his or her back to them. He slowly descends to the ground where he falls to his knees. As the black smoke raises to the air, Ren's wings retracted, his teeth goes back to normal, and the black ink slowly retracted. Ren grits his teeth as all this happened.

The smoke had completely raised into the air, giving Ruby and Yang a clean view of Ren's wings retracting into his back. Yang's eyes widen as this happened.

Ren finally went back into his normal form. And he breathes heavily as he tried to stand up. He saw blood drip to the ground that came from his head. He looked over to see Nora next to Blake, looking at him with horrified looks on their faces.

"R-ren?" Ruby called. Ren attempts to stand up. However, he paid that no mind and went onto his knees.

He looked in disbelief as he looked towards the trees. He saw a certain woman dressed in red and black. Raven was looking at him as if she was concerned. Before she could move, a rustling sound was heard in the bushes behind him.

Ren didn't bother looking behind him as he knew what was coming. A couple of Mistral Soldiers led by Lionheart emerge from the bushes. Sun was apart of the group of soldiers, and saw the fellow students hurt and defeated.

"Looks like we missed the fun." Sun commented, earning a glare from Blake.

"What took you guys so long? Yang asked as Ruby got up and started walking towards Ren. As did Nora.

"There was an increased number of Grimm between us and this location. It wasn't easy to get here." One of the soldiers answered.

"Have you got wounded?" Another asked.

"The pilot, over there." Yang said pointing to the tree she placed the pilot.

Weiss heard the voices and looked towards the soldiers.

"Hey! I have wounded over here, Jaune was hurt badly. Please help him." Weiss exclaimed. She then looks at Jaune as he started moving. His eyes slowly blink open as he saw Weiss' face.

"Weiss?" His face soon turned pale as he remembered what he was fighting.

"The Manticore!" He exclaimed and attempted to stand up. This proved to be his biggest mistake, because tripped and fell on Weiss. Landing face first onto her chest.

Jaune took a moment to process what had just happened, what was about to happen, and how much pain he was soon about to be in.

Jaune gets off of Weiss and steps back with his cheeks a light shade of pink.

Weiss sits up embarassed at what just happened. Her embarassment soon turned into anger. Jaune noticed this and began to panic.

"What on Remnant do you think you're doing?!" She shouted.

"It was an accident! I swear!" Jaune quickly defended in an attempt to defuse the situation.

"Yea right! So you think that you could just violate me and get away with it?!" Weiss said spawning a black glyph behind the poor knight. "You pervert!"

Weiss kicks Jaune through the glyph which projectiles him into a tree. As Jaune made contact with the tree, the tree broke. Jaune was now not only bleeding from his head, but now he was dizzy.

Weiss storms off, cheeks as red as Ruby's cape.

"Come on ice queen, he didn't deserve that." Yang stated as Weiss stormed past her.

Jaune only sat by the broken tree he was thrown at in a daze. One of the soldiers walked towards him.

"Are you okay?" The soldier asked.

"I just got sent into a tree by the girl I just prevented from being set on fire because of an accident and I probably have, at best, a concussion. You tell me." Jaune said. The soldier offers his hand and Jaune reaches for it. Only to grab air. Jaune continued trying to grab the soldier's hand, but he kept missing whenever he grabbed. The soldier then just grabs his hand and helps him to his feet.

Ruby gets close enough to Ren and put her hand on Ren's shoulder. Ren looks back at her.

"You saw all of it didn't you?" Ren asked. Ruby only nodded.

"You should tell the others what happened Ren. They need to know." Ruby said.

"I know. I just... I need some time." Ren said. Ruby only gave a concerned look.

"How much time do you need?"

"Enough so I can get some answers."

"Hey! Let's go before more Grimm come!" A soldier said. Ren and Ruby quickly go to join the group. As they did, Ren looked back to see Raven back away into the trees.

(())

Later on, in an infirmary, Ren was sitting on the edge of a medical bed getting bandages wrapped around his shoulder by a female medical student in the Haven infirmary. His head was already wrapped up and one of the male medical students tended to Jaune.

The student nurse assisting Ren had light tan skin, with pitch black hair in pigtails that was long to her waist. Adding to that were her pale blue eyes.

Jaune's male assistant had dark brown skin complextion with yellow eyes and short brown hair.

As the nurse wrapped Ren's shoulder, he flinches in pain.

"S-sorry." She said.

"It's fine." Ren replied. The nurse's cheeks turn reddish as she continued.

Jaune's assistanct checked for signs of a concussion. So far the only sign was minor dizziness, but nothing too severe.

"Okay Jaune, good news and bad news. Bad news, your concussion was caused by the impact of the tree. Good news is, you have your aura to thank for it only being a minor one. Try to keep from hitting your head for a few days, okay?" He asked.

"Yea, okay." Jaune said as the doctor in training stood up and walked off.

"Kamala? You almost done?" He asked.

"Y-yea, I'll be right out Clancy." She said. She wraps the bandages around his shoulder one last time and stops there. She puts the bandages away and stands up.

"There. Your wounds shouldn't take that long to heal. If it does let me know." Kamala said. Ren nods.

"Thank you." Ren said giving her a smile. Kamala smiles back with a small blush on her cheeks and walks out of the room. Ren looks back at Jaune, who looked back at Ren with a smirk.

"I think she likes you Ren." Jaune said with a chuckle.

"I think that's your concussion talking." Ren said returning the laugh. Jaune only rolled his eyes. They soon heard the door open. The next thing that was seen was a pink blur zoom into the room and nearly knocking Ren off of the medical bed with a pair of arms around him, causing pain.

"Nora! Nora! Cuts! Cuts! Cuts! Cuts!" Ren exclaimed as Nora's weight got onto his shoulder injuries. Nora gasped and released.

"Sorry Ren." She said. Ren relaxed his shoulder as Nora rubbed her head in embarrassment.

"Are you okay Ren?" Nora asked.

"I'm fine. Where's everyone else?" Ren asked.

"Ruby's catching up with her team in the other room." Nora said. "You wanna go join them?"

"No, I think they would need a moment to themselves. Catch up and everything." Ren said.

"Okay." Nora said. She then looks at Jaune.

"Are you okay Jaune?" Nora asked.

"Yea, just some minor dizziness. I'll be fine." Jaune said.

"That was a pretty hard grimm to take down. So some minor injuries were bound to occur."

"It wasn't the grimm that did this." Jaune said.

(())

Blake, Yang, Weiss and Ruby all sat in the same room. They were quiet. No one knew what to say. All they couldn't think of anything to talk about. Blake made eye contact with Yang, who only frowned and looked away.

The room was silent, and extremely tense.

"So... How's everyone doing?" Ruby awkwardly asked, trying to talk to her team. However, her attempts were failed because her team said nothing. Ruby just gulped in nervousness.

"Come on guys. It's been almost a year. Don't you think we should catch up. For the sake of the team please?" Ruby said. She soon realized that was a huge mistake.

"I have nothing to say to her." Yang said gesturing to Blake.

"Y-yang?" Blake said shocked.

"What? You thought I just forgot that you just up and abandoned us?" Yang said. Trying not to yell.

"Yang, you don't know the full story. Could you-" Weiss tried to say.

"Full story?! Beginning- She was a part of our team! Middle- She left! End- she never came back! There's the full story!" Yang shouted.

"That's not the full story Yang." Blake defended.

"What is the full story?! Because I already know how it ends! You did the same thing my mother did!" Yang said. The room got silent.

"Yang, I-"

"Save it Blake. I don't want to hear it." Yang said standing up and walking out of the room.

Blake could only look in sadness as she watched Yang walk off in anger. She looks down, upset. Ruby stands up and walks after her, leaving Weiss and Blake alone.

"I shouldn't have left." Blake said.

"Me neither, but we didn't have a choice." Weiss replied.

(())

Ren, Nora and Jaune were sharing a laugh. Suddenly, one of the student doctors came in.

"Um, Jaune, Nora? The headmaster needs to talk to you two." The doctor said. Nora and Jaune look at one another and then at Ren, then back at the doctor.

"Just me and Nora?" Jaune asked. The doctor nodded. Jaune and Nora look at Ren, who only nodded.

"Okay."

Jaune and Nora got up and followed the doctor out of the room. Ren looked at his shirt and tailcoat before hearing a door close.

It was Raven. Ren's eyes widen as he had no idea Raven would be here.

Also because he was half naked. They last thing he expected was someone like her to come in unannounced.

"Are you feeling okay?" She asked. This surprised Ren a little. Raven didn't strike him as the type to be concerned for someone else. Especially someone as new as Ren when it comes to people she knew.

"I'm... okay." Ren answered awkwardly.

"You went into the Yami no tenshi, in the forest. Do you remember that?"

"Yes. I... left a hole in the Manticore's head." Ren said.

"So you do remember it. Good, that means it doesn't have control over you so far."

"So far?"

"Yes. The Yami no tenshi will be back to take over your body, but the stronger you get, the more power it gives you, and the weaker its control has over you." Raven explained. Ren could only be confused at this. Why would that Kobura guy give him the Yami no tenshi if Ren had a chance at remaining in control. But Ren had another question to ask.

"Why were you watching me?" Ren asked. Raven gave a confused look.

"I told you. I will be keeping an eye on you."

"That's what I thought at first, but I saw how you looked at me in the forest. You weren't 'watching' me. You looked more like you were trying to look out for me." Ren stated.

"Don't be foolish. I was just making sure you didn't sell me out." Raven said.

"I would believe that if it wasn't for the fact that you followed me in the forest while I was in battle." Ren said. He didn't know if Raven was watching him since he was fighting, since he only saw her when the fight was over, but her silence proved him correct.

"Did anyone see you?" Raven asked, changing the subject. Ren was having none of it.

"Why were you following me?" Ren asked. Not wanting to change the subject.

"That's not-"

"Answer me!" Ren demanded. Raven only grit her teeth at Ren's persistence.

"You want answers? Fine. Your bloodline is the reason I'm following you." Raven confessed.

"What?"

"You're the descendant of Ketsueki 'The Phantom' Ren. One of the first people to be possessed by the Yami no tenshi by force. However, he was proved to have nearly non-corruptive blood that the Yami no tenshi couldn't bypass. If you really were the descendant of Ketsueki, then I couldn't let anything happen to you." Raven explained. Ren was surprised by this. How did Raven know this, and exactly why does she feel the need to protect him?

"Why? Why couldn't you let anything happen to me?" Ren asked.

"Because I'm not the only one who knows this. Kobura has people watching you, and these guys do their research. There's a high chance that Kobura did his, and an even higher chance that he told Salem. Either he, or one of Salem's henchmen are coming to get you. If they have you, some very, very bad things will happen." Raven explained. Now that Ren had one answer, he needed his other.

"How did you know about my ancestor?" Ren asked. Raven once again, went silent. Ren was beginning to lose his patience. Something he had a very good time doing. He too remained silent, but only because he needed to hide his aggression.

"Because Li Ren, told me." Raven answered, causing Ren's eyes to widen even more.

"How do you know my father?" Ren asked.

"That's enough questions."

"No, how do you know him?! You're not leaving until you tell me!" Ren exclaimed. Raven pulled out her sword to make the portal, but it was soon knocked out of her hand by Ren's StormFlower.

"What the-" She started as she turned around, only for Ren to charge her into the wall with his arm against her neck. A loud thump against the wall was heard as they made contact with it.

(())

Yang and Ruby was in the hall. Ruby was confronting her sister for her attitude, before they heard a loud _***thump***_ come from the rooms.

"What was that?" Ruby asked.

"Don't know. Let's check it out." Yang answered.

"Enough with your cryptic bullshit Raven! How do you know my father!? I won't ask you again!" Ren said. The black ink was reappearing on his arm and she could feel his strength increasing.

"S-seven years ago. I waited until he was done talking to the mayor, and I offered him a deal. A deal that would bring an end to Kobura once and for all. Li accepted, but his village was attacked by grimm shortly after." Raven explained. Ren was stunned by this. He lets go of Raven and backs up with wide eyes. His father knew one of those men, and he knew Raven. Ren backed up and stumbled onto his bed. He sits down and processes everything that was just said.

Raven picks up her sword and makes a portal towards the window, on the opposite side of the door.

"I'm sorry." Ren said, stopping Raven before she walked through the portal.

She stood there for a minute before looking at Ren.

"No kid. I'm sorry." Raven said, she then steps through the port.

"Ren. Is everything o-" Ruby started as she opened the door. She stopped as she saw the black ink on Ren's face disappearing, but that wasn't all. Yang and Ruby both saw a woman in red and black walk through a portal that soon closed. Yang recognized that portal.

The two stunned girls look at Ren who sighs in minor frustration.

"I might need a drink after this." He stated.

(())

 **Welp. Some shit's about to go down. Raven knowing about Ren's ancestor, and the Yami no tenshi. As well as some minor tension between the teams and Ren and Raven.**

**Will things get better? Will Ren be able to control the Yami no tenshi 100%? Will Weiss apologize for giving Jaune a concussion? Find out in the next chapter.**


	7. A dragon's anger

Chapter 7: The dragon's anger/ The explanation

Weiss was comforting a sad Blake by rubbing her back. 

"It'll be okay, Yang just needs a minute to calm down." Weiss said.

"No Weiss, she's right. I had no reason to just abandon my friends like that. Yes, I had my reasons for leaving but, I should have at least told her. I should've at least told Ruby." Blake said.

"You were in the heat of the moment, and you did what you felt was right. You felt like you didn't have a choice." Weiss said. Blake felt a little better, but still had the guilt weighing her down. The two then hear footsteps and look at the open door. They see Jaune and Nora walk passed the door.

"Jaune, Nora!" Weiss called. The two then made there way to the room.

"Hey, Weiss." Jaune said dryly with an annoyed look on his face.

"How are you two doing?" Weiss asked.

"I'm doing okay, I was lucky enough to only get a bruised rib." Nora said. "Ren and Jaune got a few more or worse injuries but they'll live through it. Right Jaune?"

"Yea, Right. By the way Weiss, thanks for the concussion." Jaune stated. Weiss sort of flinched at that, now she was uncomfortable.

"S-sorry about that." She said. Jaune only rolled his eyes and looked at Blake.

"Hey Blake. Is everything okay?" Jaune asked. Immediately after him saying that, a shockwave impact was heard.

"What was that?" Blake asked. Her answer was Yang's rage filled scream.

"What's going on over there?" Nora asked.

"Time to find out." Jaune said running to the room.

(())

Ren had just blocked a rage fueled punch from Yang, using a pulse of his aura. The punch was powerful enough to cause a shockwave that knocked a lot of stuff over, and shattered the window. It also knocked Ruby out of the room.

"Yang, I don't want to hurt you, please calm-"

"Where did she go!?" She shouted, running at Ren. Ren prepares himself. Yang unleashes a flurry of punches at the Lotus ninja. Resetting each time instead of redirecting.

Ren dodged each attack. Moving back asYang continues moving forward as her last three blows bring her to a knee, where she attempts a roundhouse kick, allowing Ren to duck underneath and sweep her leg, knocking her off her feet.

As she sat up, she saw Ren walking to Ruby. She grits her teeth and stood up. Jaune, Nora, Weiss and Blake came into view.

"What's going on here?" Weiss asked.

"Ruby, are you okay?" Ren asked, kneeling to her height.

"I'm fine." Ruby said. Ren hears footsteps running towards him. Ren, knowing who it was, quickly stands up and turns to her. Ren suffered a hit to his torso and another to his face. Ren stumbles back a little before looking at Yang charging in again. She comes in with a left hook. Ren catches it and stands his ground looking Yang in the eye.

"I do not want to hurt you Yang." Ren said.

"Tell me where my mother went or I will hurt you!" She shouted.

"I can't do that." Ren said. Yang let out another rage fueled scream and tried to knee Ren's torso. Ren stops it with his free hand and then pushes her back. Yang looks at him angrily.

"Then I'll break you until you talk." Yang said. Her eyes were red with rage.

"Yang! Stop this now!" Ruby shouted as she ran in to stop them. Ren held his arm out and kept her back.

"Yang. If you hurt Ren, I'll break more than just your legs." Nora said.

[Cue- Tekken Tag Tournament- Opening Theme]

"For my mother, that's a risk I have to take." Yang said. Ren stepped forward and got into a fighting stance.

Everyone noticed his fighting stance was different than normal. It could largely be due to to the lack of StormFlower in his hand, but even then it was different. He had his hands up to shoulder height with his left side facing Yang and his knees were slightly bent.

Yang grits her teeth and gets into her fighting stance.

Ren didn't want to hurt her, but at this point he had no choice. We would use his semblance, but she'd just get riled up again.

Yang runs towards him, and Ren scoots toward her. Yang and throws a punch to Ren's torso. Ren moves back, avoiding the punch. Yang follows up with a left hook, which was deflected, and an uppercut. Ren dodges it and Yang follows up with a downward punch to Ren's head. Ren moves back, and as Yang got ready to attack again, Ren moved in for the offensive.

Ren throws a left jab first. Yang dodges it by moving backwards. She was gonna attack, but was caught of guard by a left sidekick to the right side of her face. He quickly follows with a two punch combo and a kick to the knee. Yang nearly kneels down.

Ren the takes a step back and straightens up. His left arm in front of him and his right arm cocking back. As Yang got back up, a powerful punch from Ren sent her into the wall at the end of the wall. As she was had her back against the wall, she felt shocks throughout her body. Ren felt it too, but it was only within his hands, and it didn't hurt.

He looks at his hands to see black electricity on disappearing on his arms. He looks back up to see Yang charging at him again. Ren dodges a kick to his face. Yang quickly follows up with punches. Ren dodged majority of them, but two got him in the torso and another got him in the face.

Nora was ready to jump in and tear Yang apart. But Jaune and Weiss held her back.

Ren recovers as another punch was thrown towards his face. Ren parries and connects a hook punch to her side and follows with a straight arrow punch to her torso, causing her to stumble back. Ren moves forward and performs a downward roundhouse kick, hitting the top of Yang's head and follows with a side kick, which caused her to stumble back.

As Yang stood back onto her feet, Ren moves in once more. Yang throws some more punches, but Ren moves her hands out of the way and grabs the back of her head with both hands. He uses his left leg to knee her in the stomach, uses his left arm to perform a hook shot in the same spot, uicks her in the left leg with his right leg, and finishes with a right kick to the head. Yang stumbles, but her anger kept her on her feet. She looks at Ren with an angered look. She looked like she wanted to rip him apart.

"Yang, I'll warn you one last time. Calm down before I hurt you."

"I'd like to see you try." Yang said. She runs in again and as she brought a punch to his face, Ren's face changed. His Scleas turned black and black ink merged onto his face.

By the time she noticed this, she had already thrown the punch. Ren catches it. Her eyes went from red to lavender in a matter of seconds. Her face of anger reduced to guilt and remorse.

"R-ren? What happened to you?" She asked. The others, except Ruby gave a look of confusion. That was until they saw Ren's left shoulder slowly expand ink onto his back. It disappeared soon as Ren looked behind him.

"I think we need to talk."

(())

Later on in a room, the seven students sat in a room. Ren sat on the bed and looked at everyone. All of them were patientally waiting on Ren to tell the story of what happened. Lotus had came in and rested on Ren's lap. Ren had no idea where he'd been for the most part. But, as he scratched his head, he was glad he was back.

"Ren, tell us everything. Please." Nora said as she sat next to him. Ren sighed.

"Yesterday, I was nosy enough to watch a fight from the bushes. I thought I was safe, but one of the fighters saw me and soon enough I was thrown into the fight. They have every advantage over me, and I couldn't defend myself. It wasn't long before I was nearly dead." Ren said. Nora got a little frightened and began to hug his arm.

"Instead of killing me, they decided- Well, one of them decided, that instead of killing me, they would possess my subconcious with the Yami no tenshi, with the hopes of taking control of me."

"What?" Blake asked.

"It's true." Ruby confirmed. "The ink you saw on him was part of the Yami no tenshi. He went into its full form in the forest, that how we killed the Manticore."

"Ruby? How do you know this?" Jaune asked.

"She was the first one I told." Ren said.

"What?" Everyone else said.

"It's true. I noticed his strange behavior and talked to him. He told me what happened to him, and what they did to him."

"Ruby, why didn't you tell us this?" Jaune asked.

"It wasn't my story to tell Jaune." Ruby said.

"Then why didn't you tell us this Ren? We could've done something." Jaune said.

"Like what?"

"Tracked them down, Call the authorities, something! They wouldn't have gotten away with this!" Jaune exclaimed.

"They already did Jaune. And the reason I didn't tell anyone is because I didn't know how big this threat could be. I still don't know. I can't risk the safety of you guys like that." Ren said.

"Ren. We're a team." Nora said."We know you'd risk your life for us. We'd do the same for you."

"She's right Ren. You've stuck your neck for us, we'll do the same." Jaune said. Ren couldn't help but smile at his team. Until he looked at Yang. His smile dropped a little. She stood up and walked towards him. Ren himself stood up.

"Yang. I'm sorry, but I don't know where she went. If I did, I-"

Out of nowhere, she hugged him.

"No Ren, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have attacked you like that." Yang said.

"It's okay." Ren said hugging her back.

"You know, I wouldn't mind a sparring match down the road. You've got some moves I'd love to see in action." Yang said with a smile.

"I'll keep that in mind." Ren said with a chuckle. The two released the hug and went back to sitting down.

"Should we tell Uncle Qrow?" Ruby asked.

"He probably already knows. I could hear Ozpin , so he probably figured it out and told Qrow already."

"Wait, Ozpin?" Weiss asked.

"Isn't he dead?" Yang asked.

"No, he merged his soul with Oscar. You'll meet him later." Jaune explained.

"Jaune, I think you hit your head a little too hard." Blake said.

"I wonder who you have to thank for that." Jaune said glaring at Weiss.

"Anyway, all concussions aside, Ozpin isn't technically dead. Qrow told us that Ozpin's soul lingers around and merges with the next person's soul." Nora said.

"Kind of like that book Blake read. The one with the man with two souls, right?" Ren asked.

"Yea, right." Blake said.

"Wait, so Ozpin's alive?" Weiss asked.

"Okay, now I'm starting to think you hit _your_ head." Ruby said.

"Hey!"

"Technically yes." Jaune said.

"H-how is that possible?" Weiss asked.

"We just told you. His soul merged with Oscar's. Look, if want all the info, check in with Uncle Qrow if you want all the info. He'll explain it better." Ruby said.

"So what now?" Yang asked. Ren looks at Jaune and the two nod.

"Well, we think you guys should catch up as a team. I know that it could be a bittersweet reunion, but if there are any issues, we'll be right outside." Jaune said as he stood up and walked out of the room. Ren and Nora soon followed.

As the three and the wolf left the room they closed the door behind them. They looked at the room they recieved medical attention from to see two people leave. They had just finished fixing the room it seemed.

"So, why was Yang fighting you? You never did explain that." Jaune asked. Ren thought about what he said before. He had only explained what happened to him. He said nothing about Raven, or Yang attacking him for that reason. As a matter of fact, he couldn't remember Yang asking him after the fight. But could Ren tell his team about her? Will he be hunted or would she understand?

That was a risk he was gonna have to take.

"She saw her mother leaving my room as she walked in." Ren said. Jaune looked at him with a raised eyebrow and Nora's cheeks turned red.

"What?"

"Her mother was in my room. As she was leaving, Yang walked in. She wanted to know where her mother went. I couldn't tell her that. Not because Raven trusts me to keep her presence here a secret, but because I never know where she's going, nor where she comes from. She just appeared." Ren explained.

"R-ren?" Nora called.

"Yes Nora."

"What was she doing in the room with you?" Nora asked.

"She was talking to me about this cursed Yami no tenshi. She said it will be back to take over my body, but the stronger I get, the more power it gives me and the weaker its control it had over me. It confuses me as to why that man even bothered giving me this power." Ren explained. Nora seemed to let out a relieved sigh.

"He underestimated you. A very big mistake on his part. It's like Alvis Azul said once. 'There is no greater danger than under underestimating your opponent'." Jaune said. Ren looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Jaune, that's Conroy Zedong's quote. Alvis Azul said 'Don't look for a women who searches for a knight. Look for one who reaches for a sword.' He said that in reference to his girlfriend." Ren cleared up.

"Oh, right. Sorry." Jaune said. Ren only chuckled.

"It's fine." Ren said. Ren then realized something. Nora hadn't said a single word since they left the room. This wasn't like her.

Ren turns to look at Nora.

"You alright Nora?" He asked. Nora snapped up and looked at Ren. She was distracted by the rare exposed skin of Lie Ren and had been staring there instead of listening.

"Oh, y-yea. I'm okay. Yep. I'm a-okay. Just fine." She said as a red line popped up on her face.

"You sure? You look a little-" Jaune tried to say on for Nora to glare at him.

"I said I'm fine." She said scaring Jaune. Jaune shuts up immediately.

Ren looked confused for a moment but then shrug it off. Jaune then looked at the closed door.

"I'm gonna miss this you now." Jaune said.

"Miss what?" Ren asked.

"Having a partner. It felt nice these past seven months with a full team. Being alone is just something I'm gonna have to now." Jaune said.

"You're not alone Jaune. You've still got us." Ren said.

"I know but... It was nice to have a partner is what I'm saying. I guess this is the end of team RNJR. Right?" Jaune said getting sadder by the word.

"It'll be okay Jaune. Everything tastes better before it's sweet." Ren said.

"Unless it's pancakes." Nora said. Jaune was caught off guard and chuckled.

"Yea, I guess so. Thanks guys." Jaune said.

"No problem. This is what we're here for." Ren said.

"Come on, let's get out of here." Jaune said as he lead the way out of his room.

"Actually Jaune, I need to go to the library. I need to learn as much as I can about the Yami no tenshi before it goes for my body again." Ren said.

"Need us to come with you?" Jaune asked.

"No, but if you want to come, I'm not gonna stop you." Ren said as he walked off. Nora and Jaune look at each other, then to Ren who was walking off, with Lotus walking aside him. Then they quickly run over to follow him.

"We're a team. We stick together." Jaune said with a smirk, to which Ren smirked back. As they walked, Nora leaned against Ren, which made him wrap his arm around her.

The fact Ren still didn't have on a shirt made her want to nosebleed. But she held it back.

As they walked, Weiss opened the door and peeked out, having heard everything. She had a look of remorse on her face as she watched the three plus the wolf walk down the hall. She felt sorry for Jaune. Losing his partner, nearly his team, and now, he's losing hid pride. He had suffered so much. What had he done to deserve it?

(())

Marc and Kim-Ly were in a library. Marc had his feet on the table, reading a large book called 'Reaper's Redemption.' While Kim- Ly was on her scroll, and her hyena was sitting beside her.

"Alright, understood."

"What's he want this time?" Marc asked.

"He said Tyrian is on his way to capture that Lotus. We need to bring him to Kobura before he brings him to Salem." Kim-Ly explained. They then hear a door open. They look to see Ren and his team, plus Lotus enter the room.

"Great, how do we grab him without attraching attention?" Marc asked.

"Simple. We get him out of the library."

"And how do we do that?"

"I've got a plan. Listen closely."

(())

Ilia was on top of a rooftop, looking at the room team RWBY was in with a pair of binocalors. She took a look at Blake, who seemed to be a little saddened, and removed the binocalors. She pulled out her scroll, but something caught her eye. She looks at another window and looks throught the binocalors. She sees a guy sit down, and she sees a pink strand on his hair. She looked shocked for a minute as she took the binocalors off.

"R-Ren?" She asked herself.

(())

 **BOOM! EXPLOSIONS AND PLOT TWISTS!**

 **I'm on a timely scheduel so I gotta wrap this up.**

 **See ya soon, Team CFVY appears in the next chapter. Bye.**


	8. Memories The Plan

Chapter 8: Memories/ The plan.

(A few minutes earlier)

Ren looked around the library, looking for anything related to the Yami no tenshi. Nora was helping him look, as Jaune got distracted by a an X-Ray and Vav comic.

He had looked through the different aisle categories. He had already looked through the Non-fiction, Biography, Autobiography and came up with nothing. That left him only one place to look. The Mythology aisle.

He goes there and looks through all the books, and sure enough, it wasn't there. Ren groans in frustration.

"Ren!" Nora's voice said. Soon a couple of voices shushed her. She blushes as that happened.

"Sorry." She said silently. She then runs over to Ren.

"Any luck?" Ren asked. Nora nods and shows him the book. The book was labeled 'The Black Wing.' and was under the Mystery. That was a little confusing. That was until Ren opened the book.

' _This mysteries of the Yami no tenshi have been around for nearly a millenium. Some speculate that they have been around for as long as mankind has. Even as long as the grimm. No one knows how they came to be, nor do they know where they came from. The only thing we can confirm is that they either make powerful allies, or deadly enemies.'_ It read. Ren was now interested.

"Good job Nora." Ren said. Nora smiles.

Ren and Nora walk over to where Jaune was reading his comic and sat at the same table. Lotus got beside the chair and laid down there. Ren began to read.

(())

"R-ren?" Ilia asked herself. She couldn't believe her eyes. Was she hallucinating or something? She couldn't have been.

"I can't believe he's here. I never thought I would see him again." She said to himself.

Her scroll began to vibrate in her hand. She looks at it to see who it was. It was Adam.

She answers.

"Yes sir?" She asked.

"Ilia, The Albain brothers have informed me of your presence in Mistral, Looking for Blake. Have you found her yet?" Adam asked. Ilia looked at the window where she saw Blake and then she looked at the window where Ren was. She thought about it.

"Ilia?"

She soon made her decision.

"No sir. Not yet." She said. She hears a groan from Adam.

"Disappointing. Very well. Contact me when you do." Adam said as he hung up. She puts her phone away and looks at Ren. As she looked at him she couldn't help but gave a groan that soon turned into a smirk.

"I was hoping I'd see you again." She said as she hopped off of the building. As the chameleon faunus made her way to the building, she began to remember what he did for her.

(Flashback, Two years ago)

 _Ilia stood on top of a bridge that overlooked a train track. She watched from a distance as the train came rushing in. As the train got closer, an ox faunus a foot taller than her stood aside her._

 _"You ready?" He asked. Ilia nodded._

 _"Yes Hinto." She said. Once the train got close the two jumped of the edge and onto the train. The Ox faunus, Hinto, pulls out two bolo machete's._

 _"Take care of the rear cars. I'll take the front." He said running to the front car. Ilia readies her weapon. She drops into one of the cars and looks around. She managed to see a bunch of crates, and that was it. She walks over to the next car and saw the crates again. As she stepped into the next car, she heard gunshots. She turned around to see where it came from and figured that it came from the head car._

 _"Intruder alert!" A robotic voice said from the car she was in. As she turned around to see robots activating, she quickly got her weapon ready for combat. The robots charge at her. She squeezes her trigger._

 _The first robot approaches and Ilia extends her whip and slices it in half. Another one charges at her only to suffer the same fate. Two more run towards her. She swings the whip around herself and then at the robots. Chopping off one of their heads and the other one's arm. She kicks it a few times before finally taking off it's head. There were three left. As she stood ready to fight, something happened. The train started to rock._

 _Suddenly car started to rock, as did the rest of the train._

 _"Ilia, brace for impact!" The intercom said. Then, without warning, everything was thrown all over the place as the train tipped over and crashed._

 _Ilia was past out for a long time. When she woke up, she found herself in the arms of someone wearing a green long sleeved shirt. Whoever was carrying her was definately not a member of the white fang. Who was he?_

 _Before she could look, she is placed on the ground in an alley. She looked at who it was and saw that it was a guy as young as her. He had a long ponytail and a pink strand in his hair. He also had magenta eyes._

 _He was also a human. She grits and tries to grab her weapon, but pain stopped her. She began to groan._

 _"Don't move, it'll hurt more." He informed. He then looked out of the alley._

 _"Sshh." He said as he walked away. He peaked out of the alley and soon came back._

 _"Okay, the cops didn't see us, so you can escape. You've got a chance." He said._

 _"You're not gonna turn me in?"_

 _"No. That's why I dragged you out of that wreckage. Go before they catch us." He said. Ilia looked at this guy as if he was crazy._

 _"Why? Why did you help me? I'm white fang. You're a human. Why?"_

 _"I may not understand your methods, but I understand why. I'd just like to show you that no all of us are as bad as you think." He said. Her look softened and her skin turned white. This gave him the clue that she was a faunus. She then hesitantly held out her hand._

 _"I'm Ilia."_

 _He shook her hand._

 _"I'm Ren." They then heard sirens and saw the red and blue flashing._

 _"Go on. I'll tell them I never saw you."_

 _"What if they find out you're lying?"_

 _"Don't worry, they won't. Go." He said._

 _Before she left, she looked back at him._

 _"I- I-... Thank you." She said. She then quickly climbs up the wall and runs._

 _"You're welcome." Ren said._

 _(One month later)_

 _Ilia walked along side Fennec Albain. As she made her way to Adam Taurus. As she walked she began to think about someone. Someone she had meet a month ago. Someone who helped her._

 _"Is something wrong Sister Ilia?"_

 _"Um... its nothing. I just- thought of something that happened a month ago."_

 _"The train crash?"_

 _"No. The person who helped me out of that train crash. He wasn't a faunus or a white fang member. But he helped me, and threw the authorities off of my tail."_

 _A silence fell between them for the moment. Fennec then looks at Ilia with a concerened look on his face._

 _"Ilia. Is there a reason you're telling me this?"_

 _Ilia looked at Fennec with a nearly saddened look._

 _"Are all humans really bad?" She asked._

 _Before Fennec could answer, a certain bull faunus answered for him._

 _"Yes." Adam's voice said. The two look forward to see Adam walking towards them._

 _"Brother Adam. I have retrieved the-"_

 _"Ilia. Let me tell you something. The humans aren't your friend. In there eyes, you will be nothing but an animal. A freak. That's why you are with us. Do not begin to think otherwise. Do you understand?" Adam Taurus said. Ilia hesitately nodded._

 _"Y-yes sir." She said. Adam then looks at Fennec._

 _"Fennec. Any information on the dust shipment?"_

 _Later on, Ilia was standing by a river and looking at the water. As she looked, someone walked behind her._

 _She looked behind her and saw Blake coming behind her._

 _"Hey Blake."_

 _"Hey Ilia. I heard Adam getting all riled up. What happened?" Blake asked. Ilia looked at the river._

 _"I met someone a month ago. He helped me out of a jam just because he wanted to. He told me that not all of them were bad. I'm starting to think that's the truth." Ilia said. She soon felt a hand on her should. She turns to look at Blake._

 _"He's right. A couple of bad apples shouldn't spoil the whole bunch." Blake said. Ilia smiled and looked back at the river. She sees a lotus floating in the water._

 _"I hope I see him again."_

(Flashback ends)

Ilia enters the building and goes to the receptions desk. The Receptionist, a pale skinned, blue eyed blonde male, looks at her.

"Good afternoon ma'am. May I help you?" He asked.

"Yes, I would like to see Lie Ren please." She said.

"Um, are you of any relation?"

"I'm an old friend looking to catch up."

"Yes, go right ahead."

"Um, actually, I was wondering if he could come to me. I-if that's not too much." She asked. The receptionist looked at her for a moment before pressing a button.

"Miss Marigold. Could you bring Mr. Ren to the lobby. He has a guest." He said.

"Yes sir, Right away." A female voice said.

"Have a seat over there." The receptionist said pointing on the couch. Ilia nods and walks over to take a seat.

(())

Kim-Ly and Marc looked at Ren reading the book. Kim's hyena gave a low growl.

"Easy girl, you'll get your chance." Kim-Ly said.

"So what exactly is your plan?" Marc asked.

"I'll try to get the girl's attention, find a way to get blondie away from him. Once they're out of the way, we can get him."

"But how do we do that?"

"I'll think of something." Kim-Ly said. The two of them went quiet for a second.

"Is there a reason he doesn't have on a shirt?" Marc asked. Kim-Ly looked at him confused, before getting an idea.

"Marc, I hate to admit this, but you just gave me an idea." Kim-Ly said. Before he could say anything, Kim-Ly walked off.

"Why am I partnered with the most mysterious girl on the planet?" Marc asked himself.

(())

Ren continued to read the book. He was already on the fifth chapter. Nora rested her head on Ren's shoulder as he read. Jaune sat across the table, reading his X-ray and Vav comic.

As Ren read, he looked for evidence, clues, or even a reference to the Yami no tenshi. So far, he had only gotten theories. One of which was confirmed and the rest of which were useless at the moment.

The one he could confirm was that the possession process is done by a blind huntsman or huntress who only see victims and nothing more.

Until he came across the last paragraph of the chapter.

' _What we can confirm about the Yami no tenshi follows a set of ranks in terms of strength. The Hawk, The Falcon, The Panther, The Tiger, The Badger, and The Dragon. The Hawk is the easiest to maintain control over, with it being the weakest of the ranks. The dragon is the most difficult to maintain due to its persistancy. Very few have overcome control of this curse, but it is possible. Notable conquerors: Gavin Matoshah, Sable Li, Feng Zilar, and-"_

Ren stopped reading and looked at the last name.

" _Ketsueki Ren."_ Ren read in his head. The chapter ended there. Now Ren knew of the ranking system and which one he possessed. Now he was a little nervous.

Ren turns the page.

' _Chapter Six: The Silver eye.'_

 _'_ Wait a minute. Doesn't Ruby-'

"Excuse me sir." A voice asked interrupting Ren's train of thought. He had been so invested in the book, he didn't hear anyone come up.

He looks up to see a white haired woman with a green stripe in her hair. She wore a uniform like she worked here.

"Yes ma'am?" Ren asked.

"I'm afraid behind half naked isn't permitted here." She said. Ren looked at himself and realized he didn't have on a shirt. That had completely skipped his mind.

"I'm sorry. I'll be right back." Ren said. Nora took her head off of Ren's shoulder as he stood up, put the book down and walked out of the library. Lotus quickly followed behind. Nora watched as Ren walked out of the room. She slowly began to drool.

(())

Kim-Ly smirked as Ren left the library. She began to walk back to her spot. As she did, Marc looked at her. She nods, as did he. She goes into the bathroom and comes out in her hooded cloak she wore before.

As she walked out of the bathroom, an unconcious librarian was leaning against a bathroom stall. Having suffered trama to her head.

(())

As Ren and Lotus walked out of the library, a dark haired woman bumped into him.

"Whoops, sorry sir." She said.

"It's okay." Ren replied. She then looked at him with a bit of a raised eyebrow.

"Wait. Are you, Lie Ren?" She asked.

"Yes." Ren answered pretty unsure.

"You have a guest in the lobby." She said. Ren's eyebrow raised even more. Who would want to come see him of all people?

"Thank you." Ren said and reaverted his direction from his room to the lobby. Marc saw this and gritted his teeth.

He contacted Kim-Ly right away.

"Kim, we got trouble. He's not going to his room yet. Some lady told him to go to the lobby." He said.

"Damn. Come back in the library. I'll shadow him from there." Kim said. Marc nodded and went back into the library.

(())

Oscar was sitting in a room with Lionheart pacing back and forward, and Qrow who had a flask in his hand as he watched.

"Lionheart listen. This can't be all that bad, we don't even know the ranking of the the damn thing, it probably already gave up." Qrow said.

"No, Qrow, I'm afraid I can't risk that. That boy is a danger so long as that curse remains in his blood. If it gets loose That's not only my academy, but the rest of Mistral too."

"Oh, so for once you actually care about what's going on in your city you cowardly old lion?"

"What are you implying Qrow?"

"The entire lower half of your city is riddled with criminals. An over sized grimm nearly killed two people and brought down an entire cargo ship. And you just finished talking to one of Salem's informants. If that isn't the perfect description of the word coward, I've very sure you're talking another language."

"Do you remember Sentinel?"

"Of course, but that's not our primary problem. We need to keep Salem away from the relic. All hell breaks loose if she gets to it." Qrow said.

Oscar only sat in his chair, waiting for Ozpin to say something.

"Um... Ozpin." Oscar whispered.

"I do not intend on sinking my kingdom into the ground Qrow."

"Then why don't you grow a pair for once? This kingdom, this city is doomed with a coward like you running the school." Qrow said.

"Do not make me remove that tongue of yours."

"Ozpin?"

"Come on and give it a try. I'm itching for a fight."

" _Qrow's right. Salem may only be a fragment of the issue, but she is the biggest threat at the moment. We can deal with Ren later. Right now, we concentrate on the relic._ " Ozpin said. Oscar nodded his head.

"Qrow's right. Ozpin said that Ren's issue isn't as dire as our situation with Salem. The relic is the number one priority right now." Oscar said. Lionheart gritted his teeth.

"Fine. The relic is in my office. Under the desk. Find a safe place for it." Lionheart said.

"Finally. Let's go Oz." Qrow said. As he left, Lionheart grabs Qrow's arm.

"If any damage is done to my kingdom by that boy. He's gone."

"Any harm come to those kids, you're gone. Understood?" Qrow said snatching his arm away. He walks out of the room, with Oscar following behind.

"Ozpin. If it's not too much trouble, I'd like to know about the Yami no Tenshi. Is it really that much of a threat?" Oscar asked. Before Ozpin could say anything, Qrow spoke up.

"The Yami no Tenshi could go both ways kid. A remarkable ally, or a very dangerous foe." He said.

"Y-you know about them?" Oscar asked.

"I may be a drunk old crow kid, but believe me, I know a thing or two. I've seen the damage those things can do to the ones they love when it takes them over. I've seen what they could do their enemies. If they can maintain control over the Yami no Tenshi, they could be the most powerful ally yet. But if not, well, good luck." Qrow explained. Oscar gulped a little.

" _Could you ask Qrow how he knows of the power they possess?"_ Ozpin asked Oscar.

"Um, Qrow. How do you know that?" Oscar asked. Qrow looked back at him.

"A-at Ozpin's request."

"A dear friend of mine. Summer. She encountered one, and it wasn't a very fair fight." Qrow explained.

"How so?"

"We got our asses handed to us. Excuse my language." Qrow explained.

"It's fine."

"The only reason we even got a fighting chance is because the guy was trying to surpress it. But it wasn't enough for him." Qrow said. Oscar was a little frightened by this.

"His body was soon taken over and half of team STRQ had to fight a losing battle. If it wasn't for Summer. I wouldn't even be here." Qrow explained.

"What can you tell me about them?" Oscar asked. Qrow stopped for a minute. He had just thought of something.

"Kid. Do you know where the headmaster's office is?" Qrow asked.

"I-I think I remember, but-"

"Go get the relic. I gotta talk to someone." Qrow said as he ran off. Oscar looked at him with a dumbfounded look.

"What just-"

" _Qrow seemed to have figured something out. Quockly, the relic._ " Ozpin said.

"Right." Oscar said walking to the headmaster's office.

(())

Lie Ren made his way to the lobby. And upon making it there, He looked at the receptionist.

"Someone came to see me." He said.

"Yes, that lady right there." The receptionist said pointing to the lady on the couch. As Ren looked at the lady, the lady looked at him. He was confused as to why she was here and who she was. That was until her skin turned pink. Ren remembered who this was.

"It's you." Ren said wide eyed.

"Yes. It's been a long time." Ilia said. She had a shy smile on her face as she slowly walked towards him.

"H-how have you been doing?" She asked.

"Okay, I guess." Ren said. A small silence fell between them.

"If you want to talk about-" Ren stopped to look at the receptionist. Then turns back to Ilia. " _-something_ we ca't be here."

"Right. Is there somewhere you can go?" Ilia said.

"Yea. Come on." Ren said. Ilia followed behind.

(())

Ilia was sitting on a bed as Ren went into a closet and got a black sleeveless turtle neck with red tassel ropes over the hips. Lotus sat down looking at Ren as he did it.

Ilia couldn't help but look at Ren as he put the shirt on. Her already pink skin slowly began to turn an even hotter pink as she looked at Ren's muscular back.

"So, why are you here?" Ren asked. Ilia went silent for a minute.

"I'm here on business." Ilia said.

"So, you are still a part of the White Fang. I was sure you would leave." Ren said. Ilia's skin changed to her human skin counter part. "Look, I'm not gonna give you some long inspiring speech as to why you should leave. But I need to know why you're here."

"Well, I wanted to stop by and-"

"Do not lie Ilia. I know you didn't come here to see me. The fact that you saw me here I'm sure is from shear concidence. So why are you here?" Ren said. Ilia stopped and remained silent.

"I'm here for Blake." She said.

"Blake? Why?" Ren asked.

"Adam wants her. I was assigned to find Blake and tell Adam when I did." Ilia explained. Ren looked at her with a blank expression.

"I think I don't need to ask further on what he planned on doing." Ren said. Ilia looked in small gulit. Ren looked back at her.

"Ilia. If you're expecting me to let you leave after saying that, i'm afraid that won't be happening." Ren said. Ilia looked towards the door.

"I told him I haven't found her." Ilia said.

"What?"

"I told Adam I didn't find Blake. I kind of..." She turns pink again. "I wanted to see you again. It's been a while since I saw you and-"

"Sshh." Ren said as he looked at the door. Ilia stood up and looked at the door.

"What's going on?"

"Hide. Now." Ren said. Ilia looked around the room.

"Where?"

"Closet." Ren said. Ilia runs into the closet and closes the door behind her. As the closet door closed, The door to the room opened. It was Qrow.

"Qrow? What are you-?"

"You saw my sister didn't you?" Qrow asked right away. He wasn't threatening, nor was it panicky, but he was still angered and surprised.

(())

Team CFVY was on a boat headed to Mistral. Coco was looking over the edge, Yatsuhashi was standing next to her. Fox and Velvet were sitting on a bench, asleep. Velvet's head was resting on Fox's shoulder as they slept.

Coco looked back at them and smirked. She pulled out her scroll and aimed at them.

"Psst, Yatsu." She called. Yatsuhashi looked at Coco to see her taking a picture on her scroll. Coco snickers as Yatsuhashi rolled his eyes.

"You are so immature." He said.

"Gotta have some fun." She said as she saved the picture. "Nice to go to Mistral. I hope their people are less aggressive towards faunus."

"They've got a bit of a shady history with them, but I'm sure they're friendly." Yatsuhashi said.

"For there safety they better." Coco said as she chuckled.

(())

The badger faunus shopkeeper wipes down his table before seeing a shadow cast over it.

"I'm sorry sir but I'm clo-" He stopped talking as he looked up to see a scorpian tail go under his chin. Holding him hostage basically.

"I'm looking of someone whose scent was here. You will tell me where he is." A psychotic voice said. That psychotic voice belonged to Tyrian. He soon began to laugh.

(())

"Marc. I've got the room number down. We'll be able to grab him soon." Kim-Ly said over the scroll.

"Soon? Why not now?" Marc asked.

"His friends could be a problem. We need to get rid of them first." Kim-Ly said. Marc looked at the two hunters. Jaune was putting away a comic book to grab another and Nora sleeping on the table.

"Alright. I got dibs on the knight." Marc said with a smirk. He hangs up the scroll.

"Bout time I got a fight." He said walking away.

(())

 **Done. And more cliffhangers.**

 **SSSN and ABRN will appear in the next chapter and Raven as well.**

 **Also, I'm gonna involve scenes from Atlas. I hope you enjoyed. Please review btw.**

 **I'm out.**


	9. The Meeting

Chapter 9: The Warning

In the room with the now reunited team RWBY, Yang and Blake were talking to one another. Ruby and Weiss were a little quiet. Weiss was looking off to the side, and Ruby looked at Weiss.

"Weiss. Are you okay?" Ruby asked. Weiss looked at Ruby.

"Yes. I'm just..." Weiss looked off to the side again. "I'm just wondering if the pilot is okay."

"We can go check on him if you want." Ruby said. Weiss simply nodded. The two got up and walked out of the room. Ruby made sure to look back into the room to see how Yang and Blake were doing. Yang was hugging Blake, who hesistantly hugged back.

"Don't assume we won't understand this madness. We are a team. We'll always help." Yang said.

"I won't. I'm sorry." Blake said. The two of them hugged for a minute before releasing. Ruby smiled as she saw her sister settle the difference between her and Blake. Now it's time for her to catch up with Weiss.

(())

Marc looked at his target from a distance as Kim-Ly regrouped with him.

"So, how are we gonna do this?" Marc asked.

"There are too many people here. If we could get them alone we can attack."

"How do we do that exactly?"

Kim-Ly thinks for a moment before pulling out her scroll.

"Make sure no one sees me." She said as she turned around and extended it's size. Marc stood on security as Kim-Ly began pressing the screen.

"We are the two most suspicious looking people in the library I hope you know that." Marc commented.

"Then don't look suspicious."

"A silver haired guy standing in front of a faunus typing on her scroll with a hyena next to us. If we looked up suspicious, this would be the picture that pops up first."

"Quit complaining and keep watch. I'm almost done." Kim-Ly replies.

"What are you doing exactly?"

"Making my connections to the White Fang and turning it into an asset."

A few seconds later, Kim-Ly reduced the size of the scroll.

"Okay, I'm done." She said turning around. "In a few seconds the White Fang are going to attack a dust shipment down at the Harbor. They'll be called to investigate soon. We'll get them alone there. When they're taken out, we can move in on him. Sound like a plan?"

"Finally, you say something that doesn't leave me confused." Marc said.

"Well, let's not be rude. We'll meet them there."

(())

Raven was in a village, walking towards one of the tents. As she made her way to the tent, a couple of people wearing similar clothes to her. This was her tribe.

She made her way to the tent where she was met by a two wolf faunuses (No, they don't have overpowered semblances) with messy, black hair with long fringes and a cowlick.

They both red and black short sleeved jackets with black and red capes on their right shoulders and black pants. Also, they both had brown eyes and pure white tails.

Their only difference was that they had their eyepatches on different eyes. One had an eyepatch on his left eye, the other had an eyepatch on his right.

The one with his eyepatch on his left was Dawn, and his brother's name was Dusk.

They were the Anatole twins.

"Miss Branwen. We have a problem." Dawn said with a rough voice.

"What is it?" Raven asked.

"The White Fang have been alerted with a dust shipment that was given the okay to raid." Dusk, who's voice was a even toned, said.

"What's that got to do with us?" Raven asked.

"The shipment they're raiding is in Mistral. And after decrypting the message, it was sent by Ms. Navie from Kobura's tribe." Dawn finished. Raven went shocked for a minute.

"Where exactly will that shipment be?"

"Mistral Harbor."

"Okay, I'll see the two of you in a little bit." Raven said as she walked out the tent. Before she got out, one of them spoke up again.

"Raven." Dawn called. Raven turned around.

"Yes."

"Are we taking Higanbana, or Ajisan?" Dawn asked. Raven looked outside for a second and thought about it.

"Take Ajisan. They're farther off, so they won't be tracking us down." Raven said.

"Understood." The twins said as they walked off. Raven walks out of the tent and goes in bird form and flies away.

(())

Qrow waited for Ren to answer his question. Ren was quiet before sighing. Ilia made sure to crack the door open just a little to peek out.

"Yes. I did." Ren said.

"She came to you to talk about the Yami no tenshi didn't she?" Qrow asked.

' _What's a Yami no Tenshi?_ ' Ilia thought.

"Yes." Ren answered again.

"When was your most recent encounter with her?"

"A few minutes ago. She came to the infirmary after I got my injuries taken care of." Ren explained.

' _Wait. A women came to Ren's room?_ ' Ilia asked in her mind. She looks through the crack even more, with extreme concentration.

"Why is the Yami no tenshi in your blood?"

"I got involved in a fight with her against some guys. Kobura and Rajak I think. One of them. A blind huntsman gave it to me."

"Members of the Black Claw?" Qrow asked.

"Yes. That I definitely remember." Ren said.

' _The Black Claw? I've heard of those guys. Aren't they the one's who possess people? They did that to Ren?_ ' Ilia asked.

"What did she tell you about the Black Claw?" Qrow asked.

"She didn't tell me that much. Just that, those two were members and that they were my enemies. She also said that Kobura had people watching me, and that Salem had probably sent someone to retrieve me." Ren explained.

' _Salem? Where did I hear that name befo- Oh. Wow! I never noticed how strong Ren looked.'_ Ilia began to think as she looked at Ren's arms.

She then shook her head. ' _Focus Ilia, you want to know where you heard that name. Do not focus on Ren's... perfectly toned, athletic body.'_ Ilia thought. She shook her head again. ' _No, focus... but.'_ She looked back at the two talking. ' _Another look wouldn't hurt._ ' Ilia thought as she peeked through the cracks and looked at Ren. As she did she smiled and unintentionally leaned against the door.

Then her scroll vibrated. Ilia reached for it and fell against the door. The door opened and she fell to the floor. Qrow and Ren both look at her as she hit the ground. She looks up to see the two look at her.

"Uhh... Hi?" Ilia said.

"Care to explain?" Qrow asked Ren.

"Not a word to the others." Ren said.

"Don't worry, my lips are sealed. I was wrapping up anyway." Qrow said. "Listen, You need to be careful."

"I know. Raven had told me that-"

"I was talking about with Raven. She hasn't told you everything, for her own safety and for yours." Qrow said. He began to walk toward the door.

"My advice, tell her you know about the bandits. She'll open her mouth. You might not like what she says, but you'll know the truth." Qrow said as he walked out the door. Ren looked at Ilia who looked back.

"Who's Raven?" She asked.

(())

Weiss and Ruby made their way to a nurses office to see the Pilot sitting up at the edge of a bed. He was recovering.

Weiss let out a sigh of relief.

"He's okay." Ruby said.

"Yea I can see that." Weiss said. She then looked at Ruby.

"So, how were the others?" Weiss asked.

"Huh?" Ruby asked.

"Nora, Ren, and Jaune. How were they? You traveled with them for more than half a year." Weiss explained.

"Oh." Ruby said before pausing.

"It was fun. It was nice. Having a full team, having a partner. As we traveled, we really bonded as a team. Similar to how we did." Ruby said. Weiss looked in slight disbelief.

"Jaune sort of took it the worst. He lost his partner, and the village he normally went to. Yet, he always found a way to motivate the team. So did Ren. We had our hardships and our struggles, like any other team. And in the end, we pulled through." Ruby explained. Weiss felt a slight pain in her chest. Ruby, Nora, Ren and Jaune had all suffered. And from what was heard, Jaune had suffered the worst. How could he have been the motivator of the group if he was suffering the worst? Even worse, how much pain is he feeling since they came back?

"I'm... guessing it was nice having them around."

"It was, and I know they felt the same way about the me. I hope they can become a full team again." Ruby said.

"I do too Ruby. I do too." Weiss said.

(())

After answering a bunch of questions from Ilia, Ilia checked her scroll for what caused it to vibrate. As she looked, Ren made sure to check the hallway to see if anyone was coming. Luckily no one was.

"So, what happened?" Ren asked.

"The White Fang was given an anonymous tip from someone about a dust shipment at the Mistral harbor." Ilia explained.

"The harbor? Which one?" Lie Ren asked.

"The Hana harbor to the Southwest." Ilia said. Lie Ren made sure to keep looking outside.

"Ren, I have to go." Ilia said as she walked towards the door. She then runs back in just as fast.

"Blake's coming, I gotta get out the window." Ilia said running to the window. As she opened in, she remembered something.

"Ren, quick. Gimme your scroll." Ilia requested. Ren did so. Ilia looked between her scroll and Ren's and pressed away on hers.

"Okay, I saved your number onto my scroll and vice versa. If you feel like preventing that dust raid, I can give you some advantages. But if you do come to the harbor. Remember. I don't know you. Okay?" Ilia asked.

"Understood." Ren said. Ilia climbs out of the window. Blake comes into the doorway and Ilia looks at her. Suddenly, Lotus jumped on her and licked her face. Giving Ilia enough time to drop from the window and Ren enough time to put his scroll away.

"No, Bad! Down!" Blake said, clearly uncomfortable with a wolf licking her.

"Lotus, down." Ren said. Lotus obeyed and panted.

"Ugh."

"Hey Blake. How are you?"

"Other than being attacked by your wolf, I'm doing okay. How are you?" Blake asked.

"I'm fine." Ren said.

"That's good to hear. Even after... um... you know." Blake said gesturing towards her eyes.

"Yea, which reminds me, I have to go back to the library. That book, 'The Black Wing' is giving me a lot of information. The more I recieve the better." Ren said. That's when his scroll vibrated. He reaches into his pocket and pulls his scroll out.

He had a message from an unknown number. He looked at his contacts and saw three question marks. He assumed that was Ilia, so who was that, that sent him the message?

The message read, 'A dust shipment at The Hana harbor will be under attack by the White Fang soon. If you go, do **not** go alone. It could be a trap to capture you.'

" _The Raven sends distress._ " The voice in his head said. Ren had forgotten about that voice. This was comfirmation that it was Raven. The question was, how did she get his number? And even more, how did she

"Who is that?" Blake asked.

"Unknown number." Ren said. "It said The Hana harbor will be under attack by the White Fang soon."

"What?!" Blake said snatching his phone and looking at the text.

"Why would someone send you this?" Blake asked. Ren shrugged.

"It says don't go alone. Why would it say that?" Blake asked. Ren shrugs again.

"You think we should check it out?" Ren asked.

"Yes. We should alert the others too. If the White Fang is going to attack the harbor, it's obviously because of a dust shipment. We need to stop that." Blake said.

"I'm with you. Tell them to meet back here." Ren said. Blake nodded, gave him his scroll back, and walked out the door. Ren looked at the number, then Lotus.

"Good boy, Lotus." He said. Lotus barked in response.

(())

Soon, three out of four members of Team SSSN were making their way to the hotel team RWBY/RNJR was staying.

Sun had contacted Neptune to meet them there. He Sage and Scarlet were making their way there already.

"So, Sun. Any idea as to why we're going to see them?" Scarlet asked.

"See if they need our help with anything. Show them around town, point out the landmarks. You know, all that." Sun explained.

"Fair point." Sage replied. "By the way, have you seen Neptune?"

"Nope, but I sent him a message telling him to meet us there." Sun explained. He looks back at Sage and Scarlet. "When has he ever let us down?"

"Second day at Mistral." Scarlet said.

"Third Week of Class." Sage said.

"Any class project involving grimm from the water." Scarlet said. Sun opened his mouth to argue, but soon closed his mouth.

"Okay, good point." Sun said.

(())

"I-I-I don't know where he is." The frightened badger said. The tip of Tyrian's stinger got a little closer to his neck.

"That's not the kind of answer I was looking for. If you can't tell me where he is, then there's no point in keeping you alive." Tyrian said as he brought his stinger back.

"Wait!" The shopkeeper shouted out of fear. Tyrian stopped.

"Th-there's a guy who know's about pretty much everything. He. He moved here about 6 months ago, he runs and underground club to the east. If you're looking for someone, he'd probably know." The shopkeeper explained. Tyrian lowered his stinger and smirked.

"Those pretty little flowers will soon be mine for the taking." Tyrian said as he ran off. The badger shopkeep took a breath of relief as he sat down, still shaking in his boots. He pulls out his scroll and calls someone under the contact, 'Uncle'.

"Hello?" A voice asked.

"Uncle Xiong. I'm sorry, but, you've got a visitor." He said while his voice was still shaking out of fear. The person on the other line, noticed this.

"What happened Lavan?"

(())

As Blake made her way back to here team, Ren sent a message to Ruby, Jaune, and Nora, telling them to come back to the room. He also told Jaune to bring the book with him. As he sent the message he recieved one from the '?'

'You there Ren?'

'I'm here.' Ren replied.

'It looks like I'm not the only one that got the memo.'

'How many are we talking about exactly?'

After a long pause, Ren recieved another message.

'Is a lot a vaild number?'

'Nope'

'Let's just say, the harbor's already pretty crowded. They're waiting for the shipment to arrive it seems.'

'Right. We will be coming Ilia, so be prepared. Also, delete this conversation. If either one of us gets caught, we're dead.'

'Understood.'

And with that, Ren ended it there. He then heard footsteps. That's when he quickly hid his scroll in his pocket.

Just in time to, because it was Blake and Yang who walked in first.

"Blake told me about the message. I'm ready for some action." Yang said as she punched her fists together.

As the scroll was in his pocker, Ren pressed the appropriate settings to delete the conversation. Thanking Oum for his good memory.

"The others should be coming soon." Ren said. Yang noticed Ren's, sort of odd stance.

"What's with your hand in your pocket Ren?" Yang asked. Ren had to think very fast. Quickly find an excuse. "Are you readjusting?"

"What?" Blake asked Yang with a slight pink blush on her face. Even Ren was flustered at what she said.

"Well, most guys do that when they want to readjust unnoticed. And since two girls are in his room, I thought-"

"Yang, I don't want you to finish that sentence." Blake said.

"What, it's natural for guys to-"

"My scroll." Ren said as he pulled his scroll out of his pocket. He made sure to look and see if the conversation was deleted. Sure enough, it was.

"What?" They both asked.

"I was grabbing my scroll. I needed to look up what the Hana Harbor looked like, so we wouldn't be going into the fight blind." Ren said.

"Oh." Yang said. "Let's pretend I never said that."

"Never said what?" Ruby asked as she and Weiss walked through the door.

' _Of all people, why did she have to hear that?_ ' Yang thought.

"Nothing. Just, come on in." Yang said. Ruby and Weiss took a seat on the bed.

Soon Jaune and Nora walked through the door.

"We got your message Ren. What's going on?" Nora said.

"The White Fang are here. They're about to attack at Hana Harbor." Blake said.

"What?" Jaune asked.

"Ren got an anonymous tip warning us of an attack on a dust shipment the White Fang plan on doing." Blake explained. Ren showed his scroll to prove this.

"The White Fang are here? In Mistral?" Ruby asked.

"Apparently yes. We need to put a stop to it." Blake said.

"How do you suppose we do that?" Weiss asked.

"One thing's for sure, we need to split up. More than likely, White Fang would be pretty much everywhere in plain sight." Blake said.

"So, split up, cover more ground and take in any White Fang members?" Yang asked.

"That's about the gist of it." Blake said.

"Wouldn't it make more sense to ask around, see if anyone has seen or heard of any White Fang activity?" Jaune asked. RWBY looked at Jaune.

"That's a... pretty good idea." Weiss said surprised.

"Why is that a surprise to you?" Jaune asked.

"I just wasn't expecting you say that." Weiss said.

"Because of the concussion or you just think I'm an idiot." Jaune asked.

"I didn't mean it like that, I just... I-" Weiss stuttered.

"Weiss, sit this one out." Yang said.

"Sorry Jaune." Weiss said.

"Well, he's right. We should split up." Blake said.

"That does seem to be the smarter choice." Ren said.

"Okay," Blake said.

"I think Ren and I should-" Ruby, Nora and Blake all said in unison. They look at each other. Ruby scratches awkwardly scratches her head, Nora looks away and whistles, and Blake simply flushed.

"This is Awkward." Yang said.

"You're telling me." Weiss said.

(())

Team CFVY's ship soon arrived to Mistral. As the ship stopped. It rocked and the sleeping Fox and Velvet fell out of the bench.

As they landed on the floor of the ship, and Velvet landed on top of Fox. That's when they woke up. Velvet's face reddened immediately, as did Fox's.

Then they hear a shutter sound. They look up to see Coco with her scroll pointed towards them. Coco lowers the scroll with a smug look on her face.

"You two are so adorable."

"Coco! Delete that!" Velvet said as she got off of Fox and ran after her. As this happened, Yatsuhashi helped Fox up.

"I'll go get our stuff." Yatsuhashi said walking off.

Coco ran off the ship with Velvet chasing her. As Velvet chased her, Velvet accidentally bumps into someone.

She falls to the ground.

"S-sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"Watch where you're going freak." A male voice said. She looks up to see a large male with light grey hair.

Velvet's ears flopped.

"I, I didn't mean-" Velvet started.

"You got a problem freak?!" Another voice yelled at her. Velvet stayed on the ground, frozen from fear.

"Hey, Back off!" She heard Fox's voice said. (Image either Khary Payton or Gideon Emery's voice.)

She turns around to see Fox making his way towards them.

"Who are you?" Another one asked.

"Besides the guy who's seconds from cracking your skull in two, I'm her partner. So you best start walking the otherway before that happens." Fox said as he stood in front of Velvet to confront her bully.

Her bully was the around 6'4", a little taller than Fox, but Fox wasn't backing down. Velvet slowly stood up. She sort of hid behind Fox.

"Great, another freak defender. You a loyalist to the White Fang too?"

"Watch what you're saying. It may be the last time you use your vocal chords along with your brain cells. What's left of them anyway." Fox asked.

"Okay smart alec. You looking for a fight?"

"Make my day asshole." Fox said.

"F-fox, let's just go." Velvet suggest as he tugged her arm.

"You got a problem Graye?" A female voice asked. They turned to see the voice.

It was Arslan and her team. The guy turned around and with his three friends, walked away.

"This ain't over." He said.

"Great, another Cardin Winchester." Fox commented. He then looks at Velvet. "You okay?"

"I'm fine, I just..." Velvet said. Coco comes into view.

"I thought you were still chasing me. Are you okay?" Coco asked.

"Some jerk started picking on her." Fox said.

"That jerk is Graye. He's... well he's a jerk and a pretty big one." Reese said.

"I'll be honest. I'm pretty disappointed you showed up. I was ready to break every bone in his body." Fox said.

"You wouldn't have liked how easy he is. Heck is Nadir can take him without his sword, he's pretty easy." Bolin said.

"Hey!" Nadir exclaimed.

"I'm Bolin, member of Team ABRN." He introduced.

"Fox Alistair. Team CFVY from Beacon." Fox introduced.

"Beacon? Like that other team?" Nadir asked. Velvet and Fox look at each other, then back at team ABRN.

"Other team?

(())

Jacques sat in his office, seemingly signing paperwork. Seconds later, Ironwood opens the door. Behind him was Winter.

"Ah. Mr. Ironwood. What do I owe the pleasure of you being here?" He asked.

"Your cargo ship was brought down from a Grimm attack in Mistral. Around Ⱡ 50,000 worth of dust was lost because of it." Ironwood explained.

"A minor amount. We'll make up for that in a week." Jacques said continuing his paperwork.

"Mr. Schnee, it is speculated that your daughter was on that ship."Ironwood said. Jacques stopped writing and looked up.

"What does this have to do with me?" He said. Ironwood and Winter look at him with shocked expressions.

"What did you say?" Winter asked.

"I said what does this have to do with me." He said.

"Mr. Schnee. You're daughter on that ship when it crashed. She could be hurt. We need to see if the dust company heiress is okay." Ironwood explained.

"She's not the heiress to the Schnee dust company anymore. She has been removed of the title." Jacques said.

"She what?!" Winter asked.

"Winter, wait outside." Ironwood said.

"What?"

"Wait outside." Ironwood said.

"But sir.

"Schnee!" Ironwood exclaimed as he turned to look at her. After a long pause, Winter exited the room. As she did, Ironwood looked at Jacques with an angered look.

"Give me one reason why I shouldn't tear you apart.

(())

 **Cliffhanger again.**

 **Sorry, but Rooster Teeth is rubbing off on me.**

 **Also, Their are three references in the story. Dare you to guess them all.**

 **Also, shit hits the fan in the next chapter.**

 **How? Stick around to find out. I'm out.**


	10. The Harbor

Chapter 10: The Harbor

Winter paced back and forward outside of her father's door. She had fear and panic written all over her face. She was worried to death about her little sister. If anything happened to her, how could she forgive herself? She did it all to escape her father for sure, but the emotional pain she'd go through if something happened or happens to her sister. Winter was prepared for a lot of things, but in no way was she prepared for this.

She then hears footsteps approaching. She looks to the source of the sound and sees her brother, Whitley, walking her direction.

He walked with his normal, hands behind his back, posture. He looks at Winter and smiles.

"My dear sister Winter. To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?" He asked.

"I'm not in the mood Whitley." Winter scolded as she continued to pace.

"Such hostility. What seems to be the problem?" Whitley asked.

"I said, I'm not in the mood." She scolded once more.

"Winter. If something's a burden, I may be able to help. Is it father again?" Whitley asked. He snuck a shark smile as his sister looked away in frustration. He quickly hid it behind a neutral look.

"Since I know you'll bug me further. It's Weiss." She said.

"Ah, the middle sister. Yes. You know, I went to her room earlier and-"

"She wasn't there. I know because she stowed away on a cargo ship. That ship came down crashing in Mistral." Winter said. Whitley's face seemed to go from neutral to slightly worried.

"Oh dear." He said. Winter went back to pacing back and forward.

"If she's hurt. If she's gone I don't know what I'll do. I... I-" Winter's voice slowly began to break. She turns back around to see Whitley pull out his scroll. Curious as to what he's doing he looked at him.

Whitley places the phone to his ear as it rang.

"What are you doing?" Winter asked.

"I'm calling my sister."

(())

"Okay so, to recap. Yang and Ruby should ask around town to see if anyone has spotted White Fang activity, Jaune and Nora try to find if there's any White Fang activity out of town. Weiss can do some research here on the White Fang here, and Ren and I well go investigate the harbor. Any questions?" Blake asked.

Nora and Yang raised their hands.

"Yang?" Blake asked.

"What do we do if we find information about the White Fang?" Yang asked.

"Document it. It will only benefit us from there." Blake answered. "Nora?"

"Can you and me switch partners?" She asked. Jaune gave her a slightly upset look.

"What's wrong with me?" Jaune asked.

"Nothing!" Nora quickly said.

"I think we work well as a team." Jaune said.

"It's not that, it's just, I think Ren and I work better as a team." Nora said.

"That is true." Jaune admitted.

"But Nora, We need to Recon the harbor if anything. And Ren and I are the quietest." Blake explained.

"You two are basically ninjas." Yang said. Not even Nora could argue with that.

Suddenly, Weiss' scroll began to vibrate. She looks at the contact is, and grimaced.

"I gotta take this. I'll be right back." Weiss said as she walked out of the room.

As she closed the door, she answers her scroll.

"What do you want Whitley?" She asked.

(())

Whitley felt genuine relief as he heard his older sister's voice.

He then gives the phone to Winter.

"Weiss?" Winter asked. A smile of relief appearred on her face.

"Oh Weiss, I'm so happy you're okay." Winter said. She was on the verge of tears.

"I was informed the cargo ship you stowed away on was attacked by a grimm." Winter said. Whitley put his hands behind his back and looked at his father's door.

(())

"I do not appreciate the way you said that." Jacques said.

"Forgive me. Would you kindly give me one reason I shouldn't tear you apart?" Ironwood said.

"Now, General, I do not like a family friend coming into my office and giving me death threats."

"It's not a death threat Schnee, but I won't guarantee a prosthetic." Ironwood said.

"General. You come into my office, and you threaten me. You better have a good reason for doing this." Jacques said.

"What about the neglect of your daughter? That good enough reason? What's wrong with you? You treat your own daughters like they're the dust you use every day. Your family is not replaceable. When will you get that?" Ironwood explained.

Jacques stands up and turns to his pictures.

"She risked everything I put into this family name. All of my wealth, she has done nothing but take it for granted. I have had enough."

"The only thing you've put into this family name is hatred. If they're not as stuck up as you are, they hate your guts. If Nicholas saw the man his daughter wedded, He would deinherit both of you in a heart beat." Jacques said.

"You do not understand how difficult it was for me." Jacques said. Ironwood slams his fist onto the table.

"Do NOT talk to me about difficult. You're daughters have done nothing but make every attempt to impress you. To get your attention. And you've done nothing of the sort." Ironwood said.

"Not every precious thing is given. My attention nor my time are such."

Ironwood clenches his fists. He was ready to kill Jacques at a moments notice and it took every ounce of restraint in his body not to do so.

"A good father would make time for his children. All of them." Ironwood said as he turned around to walk out the door. As he opened the door, Jacques spoke up again.

"Better children would be deserving of it."

That comment made Ironwood squeeze the door handle.

"Since that's how you see it. You're not deserving of the Atlas Military's time. We're done. And you're gonna need a new doorknob." Ironwood said as he let go of the doorknob, revealing it to be crushed. He then closes the door.

(())

"I know, I miss you too." Winter said. She hears the door close and looks at Ironwood.

"I've got to go. I'm very happy you're alright. I'll talk to you later, okay. Bye." Winter said. She gives the phone back to Whitley, who looks at his scroll.

"Let's go." Ironwood said.

"Yes sir." Winter said. She then looked at Whitley and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Thank you Whitley." She said and walked away. Whitley looked at his Scroll as Weiss hung up. He then looked at his father's door.

As they walked, Ironwood looked at Winter.

"I was very close to killing your father." Ironwood said.

"A burden I've held for a long time." Winter said. "Any further orders sir?"

"Contact Cpl. Aiden. We're headed to Mistral."

"What about Frozen Forest?" Winter asked.

"What about it?" Ironwood asked.

"Nothing sir. Contacting Cpl. Aiden." Winter said as she grabbed her scroll.

As they walked, Whitley looked at them and looked at his father's door. His normally smug face turns into one of curiosity and a little worry.

"Whitley. Come inside please." Jacques said. Whitley looked at the door and promptly walked in.

(())

Weiss walked back into the room. She saw three things. One: Ren was putting on his green tailcoat. Two: Jaune putting his sword into his sheath. And Three: Nora loading Magnhild.

"Weiss, Is everything okay?" Ruby asked.

"Yes. I just had to catch up with my sister. So is everyone ready?" Weiss asked.

"Yes. Ren and I will start making our way to the harbor." Blake said.

"Yang and I will ask around town. We'll be sure to ask around town." Ruby said.

"Nora and I will look for clues outside of the town. See if there's anything suspicious."

"Right. I'll do some research here." Weiss said.

"Alright, team. Let's get moving." Ruby said. The teams left the room. As they all went their seperate ways, Ruby grabbed Ren's arm to get his attention.

"Good luck Ren." Ruby said.

"You too Ruby." Ren said. Before Ren left, he whistled, getting Lotus's attention. Blake looked at the wolf uncertainly.

"Is bringing the Wolf necessary?" Blake asked.

"Don't worry. He won't get in the way." Ren said.

"If he licks me once, I'll shave him." Blake threatened. Ren couldn't help but chuckle. Lotus panted as he walked alongside them as the were the first ones to walk the door.

(())

SSS got closer and closer to the hotel only to see Jaune, Nora, Ruby and Yang walk out.

"Hey, Ruby! Yang!" Sun called out. Getting the attention of all four.

"Is that Sun?" Yang asked. Looking to see that it was.

"Yo Sun. Long time no see." Yang greeted offering a fist bump.

"Long time indeed." She said.

"You guys seen Blake?" Sun asked.

"Yea. She and Ren went to down to the Harbor." Ruby said.

"What? Why? and Which one?" Scarlet asked.

"Hana Harbor. Ren got an anonymous tip from someone about a potential attack on a dust shipment there." Jaune said.

"Wait. You guys are already on a mission? You don't waste time do you?" Sage asked.

"Nope." Nora said.

"Mind if we help with this mission?" Sun asked.

"Sure thing. See if you can ask around town for any White Fang activity. Or any suspicious activity in general." Ruby said.

"That'll be easy. The shopkeeper in this town looked scared to death when we walked past him." Sun said. The four look at one another before nodding.

"We're gonna have to ask him what happened." Ruby said.

"Agreed." Yang said.

"Jaune and I will start investigating any suspicious activity outside of Mistral." Nora said.

"If we find anything, we'll call you. Do the same for us, okay?" Jaune said.

"I'll come with you." Scarlet said. "Just in case you need an extra sword."

"Alright. Sounds like a plan. Good luck." Sun said.

"Same to you." Jaune replied. And with that, they all went their seperate ways.

(())

"I had no clue they came here." Coco said. As her team and team ABRN sat at the harbor.

"Yea, they told us that they needed to come here. Something about needing to talk to the headmaster." Bolin said.

"They must have come wanting to prevent the fall of Mistral from happening next." Yatsuhashi said.

"Good on them for looking out for others. It must've been a pain to get here." Reese said.

"I'll bet it was." Velvet said.

"So you've met them right? What were they like since they've been here?" Fox asked.

"A little quiet. But then again, they've only been here for a day. But that Ren guy sort of made a lasting impression on us." Arslan said. CFVY all looked at her with curiosity.

"Really? How so?" Coco asked.

"Besides being the looker of the group, he was acting a little strange." Reese said.

"For starters, he pulled an Arslan and crashed my hand." Nadir said.

"Okay, that was an accident. But for the rest of the time, he was just. Distant. It was like the entire time he was looking for something." Arslan said.

"Or, seeing if something was watching him." Bolin finished. Team CFVY all looked at one another.

"Do you know where they're staying?" Coco asked.

(())

The young shopkeeper, named Lavan, hung up the scroll and put it away. He placed his shaky elbows on the table and buried his face in his hands.

He was absolutely terrified. He didn't know why it happened, but he did know it was nothing good. He didn't know who that guy was looking for, or why he came to him? But he was hoping he wouldn't come back.

"Hey, are you okay?" He heard a girl's voice ask. He looked up to see two of his costumers from earlier along with two guys.

"No, I'm not." Lavan answered.

"What's wrong?" Ruby asked.

"Some guy came looking for someone I didn't know and almost killed me for it. I'm freaking terrified." Lavan said.

"What happened?" Sun asked.

"I don't know. Some faunus threatened me with death if I didn't tell him something." Lavan said.

"Who threatened you?" Yang asked.

"I don't know who he was, but he was a faunus. A scorpion faunus." Lavan said. Ruby's eyes go wide. She only knows one faunus with a scorpion tail.

"Where did he go?" Ruby asked.

"My uncle's underground club. To the east." He explained.

"Guys. We gotta go, fast." Ruby said as she started running to the east.

"Wait, what? Ruby! Wait up!" Yang said as she ran after her. Sun and Sage looked at one another and ran after them. Lavan still shook in his boots.

(())

In his underground club, Junior came out of his back room and walked out to the bar area. As he was out, a henchman of his looked in his direction.

"What happened?" He asked.

"Some guy threatened my nephew. He was looking for someone that visited his noodle shop." Junior explained.

"Wait, someone threatened Lavan?" Another henchman asked.

"Yes, and I'm not too happy about it." Junior said.

Melanie and Miltia walked into view.

"What's going on?" Miltia asked.

"Someone threatened Junior's nephew." One of the henchmen asked.

"Someone threatened Lavan? Who?" Melanie asked.

"Don't know, but he's looking for someone, and he's coming to me to get the answers. Whoever he's looking for better be worth his life." Junior said.

They hear a knock on the door. Junior, the Twins and his henchmen all look in the direction of the door. It opened and a short hooded girl walks into the bar.

"Don't worry, it's just her." Junior said. The girl walked into the bar and sat down at a stool. The bartender looked at Junior, who nods. The bartender slides the girl a drink.

"So what do we do when he arrives?" Miltia asked. Before they could answer, a strange looking man walks into the room. Instantly, everyone in the room, except the hooded girl, got a creepy vibe.

It was Tyrian. He looked around the room with a smirk on his face.

He laughs a little. "A young badger told me that there's a man here that knows about pretty much everything. I'm looking for that man."

"So, you're the one who threatened my nephew?" Junior asked. Tyrian looked at Junior. Observed him and then started laughing.

"You're a badger's uncle? This must be a real treat for you then." Tyrian said.

"What do you want?" Junior asked.

"Cluelessness and foolishness, trots all throughout the land. Why, a Lotus and a Rose need to be brought to the queen before they wilt." Tyrian explained. Everyone looked in confusion.

"What is he on about?" One of the henchmen asked.

"Look pal. I don't know who you are, but after threatening my nephew, you're not getting anything from me. Now get out of my club." Junior said. Tyrian gave an unamused look.

"I'm afraid me leaving without information isn't possible." Tyrian replied.

"Good." Junior said grabbing his bat. "I was hoping, I get to break a couple of your teeth."

Tyrian smirks and activated his wrist blades.

"Another prize that must be earned." Tyrian said. Then he disappeared.

"What the!?" One of his henchmen said.

"Where'd he go?!" Another asked. Suddenly, grunts and thuds where heard. One by one, Junior's men were knocked down. Junior looked around as his men were knocked to the ground and waited.

Then he turned around swinging his bat. Tyrian blocks two attacks and pushes his blades against them. Resulting in the two of them clashing.

"Make this fun shall we?" Tyrian said.

"I'll have lots of fun breaking open your skull." Junior said. Tyrian smiles. He uses his tail to strike. Junior, only seeing this at the last second, barely dodges the strike.

Tyrian swipes his leg, and knocks him into the air. Whilst he was in the air, Tyrian slashed multiple times in his torso, before sending a kick that sent him into the bar. Which knocked over the girl's drink.

Tyrian rushed over to attack Junior again. As Junior grabbed his bat to block it, someone else blocked the attack.

A blade coming out of the end of an umbrella in the hands of the hooded girl. Tyrian looked her way, only for her to kick him in the face and flip out of her chair. She throws off the hood and reveals her pink and brown colored hair, and pink and brown eyes. Tyrian looked as she gave him a threatening look.

This girl, was Neopolitan.

As they exchanged glances, Junior swung his bat. Tyrian back bends to dodge it, which proved to be his misdeed.

Junior notices Tyrian's exposed knees, and kicks him in one of them, nearly knocking him off balance. Junior swings his bat downwards, but Tyrian siderolls and regained his footing. He does a front flip and brings his foot down on top of Juniors head, before kicking him again.

Neopolitan runs over to him and begins to swing her umbrella. The two clash multiple times. The sounds of blades slamming against one another riddled the room.

Tyrian swings more times with his wrist blades. Only for Neo to jump over him. As she landed on the ground, Tyrian used his tail to attack her. Neo blocks it and advances forward.

Junior runs towards him and swings his bat at his head at the same time Neo swings her sword at Tyrian's feet.. Tyrian spin jumps through the middle opening and lands on the ground. He performs a spinning kick handstand that staggers them before a second forward handstand kick sends them both away. Junior is knocked to the ground. Neopolitan does a back flip onto her feet. Glaring at the Scorpion faunus once more. The two circle each other, glaring each other down.

Tyrian had a smile on his face the whole time. That was until his scroll vibrated. Without warning, Tyrian pulled out smoke pellets and threw them to the ground.

When the smoke rose, Tyrian was gone. Neo puts the tip of her sword back into the umbrella and walks back to the bar. Melanie and Miltia go over and help up Junior. As they helped him stand to his feet, they hear the door open again. This time, it was four teenagers. One of which the three recognized.

"Junior!" Yang called out.

"Not in the mood Blondie." Junior said as he brushed himself off. Ruby looked at the knocked out and fallen henchmen.

"What happened here?" Ruby asked.

"We got our asses kicked." One of the henchmen said.

"Hey come on dude, watch your language." Sage said.

"Shut it." The henchmen said.

"What do you want?" Junior asked.

"We heard a scorpion faunus was coming here. Was he-"

"Just here? Yes, he gave us a nice welcome too. There was cake and balloons, and even a couple of drinks." Junior sarcastically said.

"Okay, we get it, you aren't too happy, just tell us what happened." Ruby said.

(())

Ren, Blake and Lotus made their way to the harbor. The first thing they did was climb on top of one of the crates. Ren carried Lotus up there as Blake climbed up on her own. They traveled from crate to crate until they came across a large group of White Fang members moving dust crates.

'Ilia wasn't kidding when she said there were a lot hear.' Ren thought.

"There's so many here. How many do you think are here?" Blake asked. Ren looked around to to see the amount of White Fang members that were in the area.

"I count around 70 members, maybe 75. Hard to see from up here. But where's the crew?" Ren asked. Blake looked around and started to assume the worst.

"There they are." Ren said pointing the crew men that were tied up and taken hostage. Blake took a sigh of relief, now knowing that the crew was alright.

"Thank goodness." Blake said. She looks at the crew to see a familiar looking female figure. Blake grits her teeth.

"Ilia." She said. Ren looked where Blake was looking and saw the chameleon faunus standing by a pretty tall tiger faunus. Blake looked at Ren.

"Ren, we need to get over there." Blake said.

"How do we do that without detection?" Ren said. Blake looked at Ren, and the White Fang, then back at Ren.

"How good are you at playing faunus?" Blake asked. Ren looked at Blake and a small silence fell between them.

"I do not like that question." Ren said.

(())

Sun, Sage, Yang and Ruby all sat at the bar and listened to Junior.

"So, he came in and you wanted to attack him?" Sage asked.

"He threatened my nephew, I wasn't too keen on letting him walk away unpunished." Junior said.

"That didn't work out too well it seems." Sun said. Junior gritted his teeth.

"I wanna know how you're the uncle of a faunus." Sage asked.

"Not his real uncle, he just sees me like- You know what, what do you kids want? You're cutting into my time." Junior said losing his patience.

"Do you have any info on the White Fang?" Yang asked.

"Has there been any activity on the White Fang as of lately?" Ruby asked. Junior remained quiet for a second.

"Now that you mention it, there's been a few. And some have even been seen meeting up here. They don't ever stay longer than five minutes. And the one's that come, they leave and never come back. It's never the same people meeting up." Junior said. The four looked at one another.

"Did you hear anything we should know?" Ruby asked.

"Nope. They were always discreet. No one heard what they were talking about." Junior said.

"What should we know that you do then?" Sun asked.

"They started another group called the Chosen Loyals. Nothing is known about them except that they exist."

"And that that's a dumb name." Sun said. Junior rolled his eyes.

"Look that's everything I know. My advice. Always watch your back, you never know who's where." Junior said. They nod and began to walk out the door.

"Don't think I forgot about that drink you owe me." Yang said turning around.

"Whatever." Junior said. Yang just stuck out her tongue and turned back around.

"So now we have to get info on The White Fang and the Chosen Loyals?" Sun asked.

"Seems like it. I wonder who the Chosen Loyals are anyway." Yang said. "Which reminds me, why did we rush here?"

"The scorpion faunus that shopkeep described was the same one that attack me and the others in Oniyuri. He was crazy and we couldn't let him attack anyone else. But I cut off his stinger last time. If he's back on his feet, that can only mean that-" A knife flew passed them and hit the door. They looked at who threw it and saw the familiar face. Neo. Turning back around.

"You!" Yang said as she made her way towards her.

"Taking potshots behind my back? Now you're dead." She said cracking the knuckles on her normal arm.

"Yang wait! There's a note!" Ruby said as she noticed a note pinned by the knife. She takes the knife off of the note and read it with Sun and Sage.

'The Chosen Loyals are a human terrorist group that work with the White Fang. Either working as spies or directly with them.' The note read.

"What does the note say?" Yang asked.

"The Chosen Loyals are humans that work with the White Fang." Ruby said. Yang looked back at Neo, who's back was still turned.

"Is that so?" Yang asked. Neo didn't respond nor turn around.

"According to the note, yes. But how do we know she's telling the truth?" Ruby asked.

"Look at the bottom." Sun pointed out. Ruby looked to see a side note in parenthesis.

'Read back in case of doubt' It said. Ruby turned it around to see another note. 'If you don't believe me, Look up the Loyalist Trade that happened three months ago.'

"Loyalist trade? That doesn't sound too promising." Sage said. Yang looked at Neo with a confused look on her face. Confused as to why someone who tried to kill her at one point is helping her. Ruby was thinking the same thing. But, she wasn't going to doubt it.

"Come on guys, I think we have enough info. We should still ask arond town for more. Let's go." Ruby said. They all walked out the door. As they did, Yang looked back at Neo, who still sat on the stool facing the bar. She wondered what was going on in her head. She didn't trust her, none of them did, but Yang just had the vibe that said 'don't attack her.', having no idea why.

They left the bar.

(())

Jaune, Scarlet and Nora were currently in the forest. Looking for any clues they could use.

"What are we looking for exactly?" Scarlet asked.

"Any clues to the White Fang, see if they were doing anything suspicious out here." Jaune answered.

"What would we find out here exactly?" Scarlet asked.

"Plenty of things. Weapons, tracks, dust left behind-" Jaune said.

"A white fang mask." Nora added.

"Yea, that kind of stuff." Jaune said before realizing that Nora blurted out something oddly specific.

"Wait, what?" Jaune asked. He looked in Nora's direction to see that she had picked up a mask. An unusual White Fang mask. It seemed to resemble that of a fox.

"That's a weird looking mask." Scarlet said.

"It kinda looks like a fox." Jaune said.

"What member of the White Fang left there mask behind?" Nora asked.

"Maybe I can figure that out." Scarlet said as he pulled out his scroll. "If I can scan the mask, it'll tell me who's been wearing it. We could track them down from there." Scarlet said. He takes the mask and begins to scan it with his scroll.

"This could take a minute. Look for more clues." Scarlet said.

"Alright." Jaune said as he and Nora walked away. The second they were out of sight, Scarlet felt a pinch in his neck. He uses his hand to inspect it and felt a dart. Then, he passed out.

(())

Jaune and Nora were more into the forest, still looking for clues. They hadn't come across any. As they looked, they both got an uneasy feeling.

"Hey Jaune." Nora called.

"Yes Nora?" Jaune asked.

"Do you think it's weird that we found a mask in the middle of the forest?" Nora asked. Jaune looked a little wide eyed for a moment.

"As if it was conveniently placed there waiting for us to pick it up? Yes that does seem a little weird." Jaune replied. They both looked around the area, and saw nothing. They felt a little uneasy.

"I don't like this Nora." Jaune said.

"You think we should check on Scarlet?" Nora asked.

"That would be a good idea." Jaune said. However, instead of walking back, they started to run.

[Cue Bad Situation- Naruto]

They only ran five steps before ten kunai landed in front of them, forcing them to stop. The two of them backed up and took out their weapons. A female figure with a hyena tail jumps out from the trees and lands on the opposite side of the kunais. She activates two tekko kagi claws and runs towards them.

She slashed upwards at Nora. She dodges it, Quickly, the girl spins and slashes downward. Which Nora only barely dodged. Jaune attempts to step in, but was soon stopped when a silver haired male blocked his sword attack using his leg. Jaune didn't have time to react as a series of jump kicks came in his direction from the male.

As the male landed back onto the ground, He attempts to sweep his leg. Jaune moves his leg just in the nick of time. However, he couldn't block the reverse roundhouse kick that quickly followed up. Hitting him in the face. Jaune attempts to retaliate, but the male blocks it and spin kicks him back.

Nora swings her hammer at the girl, only for her to dodge it and kicks Nora twice in the face, knocking her towards Jaune.

(())

Nora lands next to Jaune who had just recovered to his feet. They looked at their attackers.

"Who are you?!" Nora asked.

"What do you want?!" Jaune asked.

The two look at one another, then back at Jaune and Nora.

"Since you asked politely, My name is Marc, and this is my partner Kim-Ly. And we want the two of you, out of the way." Marc said.

"Out of the way?" Jaune asked. "Out of the way of what?"

"Well, we've been assigned a very important…. Oh, wait a minute. I almost forgot." He looked at the two. "This isn't an action movie. What, you thought I was gonna just reveal the plan so you can-"

Marc was interrupted by Nora shooting at his feet. The two jump back to avoid the shot. Marc landed at the base of the tree as Kim-Ly landed in the branch.

"That should be the signal that you talk too much." Kim-Ly said.

"Shut up and get the girl." He said as he charged in.

[Cue- Japanese Battle Music- Shuriken]

Kim-Ly launches off of the branch and upon landing, slashes at Nora. Nora blocks it with the handle of her hammer and swung at Kim-Ly. She ducks and started slashing. After dodging a few, Nora jumped into the air and slammed her hammer down on top of Kim-Ly. Which was blocked with little to no effort.

Jaune used his shield to block a reverse roundhouse kick. The kick was strong enough to move it away from his face. He quickly retaliated by swinging his sword. Only for Marc to bring his leg and block the sword. As the blade was blocked, a small area of his leg suddenly became a shiny brown metal. Jaune went wide eyed and didn't see the 540 roundhouse coming.

As Jaune was knocked to the ground, He looked at Marc.

"What are you? Some kind of robot?" Jaune asked.

"Well, let's just say my semblance is the reason my last name is Bronze." He said moving in again. He throws a few kicks at Jaune. The last one was and axe kick that Jaune blocked with his shield.

"Guess swinging harder is my only option." Jaune said as swung his sword, he aimed for Marc's torso. Marc backflipped onto his hands and performed the flare. Hitting Jaune's legs and knocking him off of his feet.

(())

Kim-Ly flips over Nora as swung her hammer. As she landed she blocks a swing and started to slash at her. Nora dodges a few and attacked with her hammer again. But Kim-Ly dodged it again. She then deactivated her Tekko Kagi and pulled out a kunai. She threw it at Nora, Nora dodges it. But what Nora didn't know was that there was a target on her back . Literally. Kim-Ly's Kunai stopped mid air and came back after Nora as she ran after Kim.

It stabs her in the back as she brought her hammer back, stopping her. Kim-Ly took opportunity and flipped over her. She took out the Kunai and flipped Nora over her shoulder. Before Nora hit the ground, Kim-Ly threw the Kunai where she was gonna land. The Kunai exploded, sending Nora into the air. She landed on her head as she flipped onto her back, and knocked her out.

Kim-Ly looked in the direction of Marc and Jaune. She saw Marc kicking Jaune by the shield, causing him to slide back. She runs toward them.

(())

Jaune slide back as Marc kicked his shield. Marc charged in again and throws mid air spin kicks. Jaune tried to swing his sword, but it was kicked out of his hand.

As his sword stabbed into the ground, Kim-Ly flipped over him spinning a Kusari-Fundo. She throws it at Jaune's feet and wraps it around. She then pulls Jaune off of his feet and Marc follows up by kicking Jaune in the torso. Knocking him into a tree.

As Jaune hit the ground he attempts to get up, Only to be hit with the weighted end of the Kusari-Fundo, knocking him out too.

Marc looks at Kim-Ly, irritated.

"The hell Kim! I had him!" He exclaimed.

"You were wasting time. We have a mission remember?"

"Killjoy."

"Let's go." Kim-Ly said walking away. Marc groans and follows her.

Seconds after disappearing, Scarlet woke up.

"What happened?" He groaned as he felt his head. He moves his hand to the dart in his neck to see that it was what knocked him out.

"Oh crap, where's Jaune and Nora!?" He asked and ran off to find them. He does so and Nora slowly was regaining consciousness. But Jaune was bleeding from his head.

"Nora!" Scarlet called.

"Huh?" Nora said as Scarlet ran past her and ran to Jaune.

"What happened?" Scarlet asked as he tended to Jaune as he woke up.

"Some guys attacked us." She said as she looked at Jaune. She then realized he was bleeding.

"Some guys attack you? Who?" Scarlet asked as he wrapped Jaune's head in bandages to stop the bleeding.

"I don't know, a guy named Marc and a girl named Kim-Ly. Jaune are you okay?" Nora asked.

"I'm fine. Just… *grunts* Just a scratch." Jaune said as Scarlet finished wrapping the bandages around his head.

"We have to tell the others what happened." Scarlet said.

Jaune nodded and pulled out his scroll.

(())

A White Fang dingo faunus walked past a small gap of Metal shipping crates. As he did, an arm grabbed him and pulled him in the gap. That arm belonged to Lie Ren as he quickly got him into a rear neck choke, silencing any scream he could let out.

Soon he passed out, and Blake grabbed him and dragged him off. They quickly take off his clothes and tie him up, putting duct tape on his mouth.

As he woke up he saw the two closing him in a crate. He tries to alert someone, but his muffled yell couldn't be heard as they closed the door.

The two run to a hiding spot, with the White Fang uniform.

"Blake, I don't like this idea." Ren said. As he started to change.

"I'm sorry, but if I go, I'll be detected." Blake said. She looked as Ren exchanged shirts. The bandages he left on gave him an intimidating, muscular, and... dare she say, attractive look. She was so distracted that she didn't hear his question.

"Blake?" Ren called. This snapped her out of her daze.

"Huh?" Blake asked.

"I said, I look nothing like a Faunus, what if I get stopped?" Ren asked. Blake thought for a minute then she got an idea.

"Tell them you're a Faunus from Atlas. Some canine faunus get there tails docked to avoid discrimination." Blake said.

"Blake, I really don't feel comfortable pretending to be a Faunus. They've been mocked enough." Ren said. He had gotten the clothes pretty fast. He takes the mask and looks at Blake. She takes the mask and helps him put it on.

"They're the ones who are giving Faunuses a bad name. We stop them, we can keep others from mocking the Faunus. You can do this. I believe in you." Blake said. Ren nods.

"Okay, I'll do it." Ren said. Blake smiled.

"Thank you." Blake said. "I'll watch from above. Good luck."

"Likewise." Ren said. He then looks at Lotus. "Let's go boy."

Lotus Pants and follows Ren. Blake climbs up the crates to get an overhead view.

As Ren walked, he looked around the docks, he say a lot of White Fang members. It made him wonder, where did they come from?

He walked closer to where the crew was before an ox Faunus with two machetes on his back noticed him.

"Hey. Who are you?" He asked. Ren needed to think fast. "Are you one of the new recruits?"

Things could go the total opposite direction if he told him yes.

"No, I'm not."

"Oh, sorry, but I haven't seen you around here before. What's your name?" He asked.

"I'm Okami." Ren said.

"Okami? Nice name. I'm Hinto." The ox said holding out his hand. Ren shook it. The man was easily 6'6" and had a lot of muscle behind his hand. Surprisingly, so did Ren. This was surprising to both of them.

"You've got a strong grip behind you." Hinto said.

"Thanks." Ren said as he looked at the hostages.

"You don't really look like a Faunus." Hinto pointed out. Lotus growled.

"Easy boy. I'm sorry I don't exactly look the part. You can't really when your tail is docked." Ren said. Hinto sort of went wide eyed.

"So, shoot. I'm sorry Okami, I didn't know you were from Atlas." Hinto said. Ren did a mental sigh of relief.

"It's okay." Ren said. He looked at Hinto's face and saw he had a blank left eye, and his right one was yellow.

"What… uh. Happened to your eye?" Ren asked.

"Train accident, about two years ago." Hinto answered. Ren looked back to two years ago when he helped Ilia. He had no idea she was with this guy.

"So, what Faunus are you?" Hinto asked mid thought. Ren had to think. He looked at Lotus and got the idea.

"A Wolf." Ren said.

"So, you're a wolf with a wolf. Now that sounds like the start of a good joke." Hinto chuckled. Lotus growled again.

"Jeez, Wolfie. Learn to take a joke. Speaking of which, what is his name?" He asked. He sure did ask a lot of questions. Ren quickly thought and came up with-

"Drei. His name is Drei." Ren said. Lotus gave an 'aroo?' In confusion.

"Drei? That's an odd name. But you seem reasonable, so I won't question it." Hinto said. Ren then looks at the hostages.

"Is that the crew?" Ren asked.

"Yea, their fate is being decided right now." Hinto said. Ren looked a bit taken back by that.

"What?" Ren asked.

"Yes. They're deciding on whether they die or they live." Hinto said as he looked at the hostages. There were four of them. Two males two females. All were blindfolded. All were terrified.

"I hope they let them go." Ren said out loud by accident.

"I do too. I mean, I know I'm not exactly the nicest guy around, nor am I too fond of humans. There's a lot of things I'll do for equality. Genocidal Murder isn't one of them." He said. Ren looked at Hinto.

"Hey, Hinto!" A voice called. Hinto looks over to see a deer Faunus by a very large crate. The crate was at least 17 feet tall and 19 feet wide.

"Help me with this!" He said.

"See you later Okami." He said walking off.

"Take care." Ren said. As Hinto walked off, Lotus growled at Ren.

"What, I panicked." Ren said. Lotus stopped growling and Ren walks toward the hostages. The were all shivering with fear. Not knowing what was gonna happen next. Ren looked at his StormFlower and at the ropes that kept them tied. One quick motion could free them, but he'd be caught. What was he gonna do?

"What are you doing?" a voice said behind him. He turns around to see a tiger Faunus next to a familiar looking chameleon Faunus.

"Um, nothing. I just-"

"Just what? get back to work. Adam wants this shipment cleared as fast as possible." The tiger Faunus said. The chameleon Faunus looked at Ren before going wide eyed under the mask.

"What a minute. Who are you?" He said.

"Wait, Ari. It's cool, he's with me." She said, confirming this was Ilia.

"He is?" Ari asked.

"Yes sir. I'll take him with me." She said.

"Okay, get moving." Ari said. Ilia grabbed Ren's arm and pulls him off.

(())

From on top of one of the crates, Blake sees up until Ren was called by the tiger Faunus. That's when her ears picked up a large door opening. She looks over to see that the large, 17 foot tall create open. Inside of the crate was a very large, heavy looking robot. The robot was very different from the Paladins from before. This one had four legs, two arms with red fists, and a dinosaur like head. Blake had no clue what that was, but she knew this couldn't be good.

(())

Weiss had received the message from Ruby to look up the Loyalist Trade. What she managed to find out was a little shocking to her.

In the library, at a computer, she was currently reading an article on the Loyalists trade that happened three months ago.

She grabbed her scroll and texted Ruby.

'the loyalist trade was an event that took place three months ago. The White Fang and the chosen loyals had raided a dust mine taking all of the miners hostage. They stole around 72,000 lien worth of dust and disappeared Without a Trace.' Weiss texted.

She waited and soon got a text back from Ruby.

'so they're basically the White Fang in human form?'

'Basically.'

After a few seconds Weiss ended up getting another text from Ruby.

'Weiss! I just got a message from Scarlet! Jaune and Nora got attacked!'

Weiss read the message twice to clarify she had read it correctly.

'Who attacked them?'

'They don't know. But they said they sounded like they were on a mission.'

'Are they okay?'

'Jaune's bleeding but he said he can still fight. I don't think that's a good idea.' Ruby's text read.

'I'm on my way.' Weiss said as she walked out of the library and running off. As she ran, a man with short black and gray hair came across the room as she left. He smirked as she ran off.

This was Arthur Watts.

(())

Oscar had made it to Lionheart's office and upon walking in he looks under the table. As he looked, he couldn't see anything.

"Um…. Ozpin. I don't see the relic." Oscar said.

" _Oh no. Oscar. This is a very big problem. Inform Qrow and Lionheart and meet up with the other_." Ozpin said. Oscar could've sworn he heard slight fear in Ozpin's voice. This was serious.

"Okay, I'm on it." Oscar said as he ran out of the room.

(())

Ilia dragged Ren out of sight and to a private area. The second they made sure they were alone, She takes off Ren's mask.

"So you did decide to come here. I can't say I'm surprised." Ilia said. "You're here for the crew right?"

"More or less. I'm also here to stop this attack, but I'll need some more assistance." Ren said. Ilia looked behind her and then looked back at Ren.

"I'm risking a lot by doing this, but, what do you need to know?" Ilia asked.

"Any idea what was in that giant crate?" Ren asked.

"Some kind of prototype robot called the P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Prototype Anti-Terrorist Robot, Incorporated Omni-Tactical." Ilia explained.

"I'm not one for naming, but whoever came up with the acronym after naming the robot." Ren said.

"Well the White Fang are gonna try to hijack it. They think it would be a brilliant to have at their arsenal." Ilia explained. Ren didn't want that to happen. Before he could say anything, IT came back.

" _The relic's in danger_." The voice said. Before anything else could happen, before Ren could react, a throbbing pain hit him in the head.

Ren reacts violently. Grasping his head and yelling to the extreme pain.

"Ren!? What's going on!?" Ilia asked.

"It… It came back!" Ren said. He falls onto his hands and knees. "Ilia! Run! Tell them you caught me! Escape from me!"

"I-I can't just-"

"Go!" Ren said looking at her. The black dragon ink began to appear. Ilia, out of fear and concern, ran off. As she ran out, a rabbit faunus looked at her.

"What's going on?!" She asked. Ilia swallowed whatever guilt that she'd feel, but still went with the plan.

"An intruder. He's in there." She said. The rabbit faunus nods and goes in after Ren, only for a powerful blow hit her in the head and sent her flying into a crate, leaving a dent. The surrounding White Fang members look at the crate, and then at the spot she flew out of.

Unknowing to them, the P.A.T.R.I.O.T activated with glowing red eyes.

(())

 **Cliffhanger!**

 **Told you shit hits the fan.**

 **See you next time.**

 **Also, did you catch the references? Review if you did.**

 **Until next time, I'm out.**


	11. The Harbor part 2

Chapter 11: The Harbor part 2

Oscar ran to find Qrow and Lionheart. He looked around, but had no luck finding them. He stopped in the hall and began to look around.

"Ozpin, you wouldn't happen to know where they are, would you?" Oscar asked.

"Lionheart, I don't know, but knowing Qrow, he's probably in a bar." Ozpin said.

"Okay, so bar. Got it." Oscar said. He runs to the direction of the bar, only to bump into someone on the way there, which knocked him to the ground.

"Whoa pipsqueak. Where's the fire?" Qrow asked. Oscar grimaced and stood up.

"Stop calling me that." He said.

" _Oscar. Focus._ " Ozpin said. Oscar shook his head and groaned.

"We have a problem. The relic is missing." Oscar said, right as Qrow took a sip of his drink. This resulted in him spitting the drink out.

"What?!" Qrow asked.

"The relic is gone. I went to grab it and it wasn't there." Oscar explained.

"Damn." Qrow takes out a piece of paper and quickly writes.

"Here, warn my niece and the others. Find a way to meet up with them. I'll tell Lionheart. We have to hurry." Qrow said as he gave him the paper. The Qrow took off running. Oscar looked at the number and began to call.

(())

Blake heard Ren's screams of agony, and saw Ilia point him out to someone. She grits her teeth and unsheathes Gambol Shroud in katana form and jumps off the edge. She falls to the ground in a crouch, then continues on to hide behind one of the containers, peeking around the corner to see Ilia backing away from the crowd. White Fang had crowded around the crate as the grunts and screams of agony went on.

Blake snuck up on Ilia and places her blade against her neck.

"Don't move." Blake commanded.

"B-blake?" Ilia asked.

"You miss me?" Blake asked. Ren's grunts got louder.

"Move in, Grab him!" Ari commanded. Five White Fang members, armed with swords go into the crate. The second they entered, they saw Ren on one knee, with two black wings coming out of his back.

"What the heck is that thing?!" One of them shouted. Ren looks up and his scleras pitch black.

"Take it out!" Another out shouted as he transformed his sword into a pump action shotgun.

Before he could fire a shot, Ren dashes forward and grabbed his gun pointing it upward. He crushed the gun with his one hand and grabs him.

He then smashes him into the ground, leaving a dent. Another one charges him. Ren kicks him into one of his comrades. The next one swings his sword at Ren from behind. Ren grabs the sword and breaks off the blade. He takes the broken blade and throws it into his knee. Then Ren grabs him, throws him into his comrade that was right by the entrance. Then Ren ran towards them and with one powerful punch, sent them both flying out of the crate.

The rabbit faunus slowly woke up and saw her comrades hit the same dent, but instead of leaving one, they went clean through that crate, and the other 3 behind it.

The other White Fang members looked at the crate they flew out of.

Ilia and Blake were just as surprised. As Blake was distracted, Ilia grabbed her revolver and activated the whip form, wrapped it around Blake's foot. By the time Blake noticed, Ilia had sidestepped, and tripped her. She then uses the whip to throw her off. As Blake hit the ground, she recovered to see Ilia running off.

"Hey!" One of the White Fang member's said, looking at Blake. Before he could do anything, a White Fang member shouted.

"WHAT IS THAT THING?!" causing in both of them look towards the crate as Ren walked out.

While Blake looked away, Ilia wrapped her whip around the White Fang member's neck and choked him out.

(())

Ren walked out of the crate as the members of the White Fang looked at him. They all began to slowly back up.

Ren looked at the white fang shirt he was wearing and growled. He rips it off and looks at the crowd.

"What are you standing around for?! Kill it!" Ari ordered. The White Fang all lifted their weapons, and the second they lined up to Ren, he jumps into the air, flapping his wings. Within half a second, he was already fifty feet into the air. As they looked up to see him with his fist drawn back. His fist was sparking with black electricity. He slams his fist into the ground causing a shockwave that knocked a lot of them.

(())

Team CFVY and ABRN looked in the direction of the harbor.

"What was that?" Coco asked.

"Trouble." Bolin said.

"Should we check it out?" Fox asked.

"Definitely. Let's go!" Arslan said. They get up and ran towards the docks.

(())

Weiss met up with the others and saw Jaune and Nora talking with the others. Jaune was rubbing the bandages on his head.

"Ruby, I got the message." Weiss said as she looked at Nora and Jaune.

"Are the two of you okay?" Weiss asked.

"I'm fine, but Jaune-"

"Nora, stop saying that I'm hurt, I'm perfectly fine." Jaune said.

"Jaune, you're bleeding from your forehead, that's not suppose to happen when you have aura." Sun said.

"For the thousandth time, it's just a scratch. I'll be fine."

"Look vomit boy, I know you've gotten stronger over the months, but you've taken enough-" Yang's speech was interrupted by a shockwave hitting their ears. They look to see the a bunch of dust fly into the air.

"What was that?" Sun asked.

"I don't know, it came from the harbor. It doesn't sound good." Sage said.

"Let's get moving." Ruby said. As they began to run towards the harbor. Weiss grabs Jaune's arm.

"Jaune I think you should stay here." Weiss said.

"I think not." Jaune said taking her grip off of him and began to run with the others. Weiss reached for him and groaned before running to join them.

(())

Oscar tried his best to call Ruby, but to no avail.

"Ozpin, she's not answering her scroll. I can't warn her about the relic." Oscar said.

" _Oscar, we don't have time to wait, you'll have to go find them._ " Ozpin said.

"But, how am I supposed to know where-" Oscar then hears a shockwave.

"What was that?" Oscar asked.

" _That sounded like a shockwave. Something must've happened. You might want to get moving._ " Ozpin said.

"W-what? Why would I go towards the dangerous sounding noise. I- I'm not-"

" _Oscar, the huntsmen are probably headed towards the noise. You need to tell them about the relic."_ Ozpin said. Oscar groaned and agreed.

"Fine. If I get hurt, you have to break it to my aunt." Oscar said.

" _That's not how it works, but I'll make sure nothing happens to you._ " Ozpin said. As Oscar walked, Ozpin brought something up.

" _Oscar? Where's my cane?"_ Ozpin asked. Oscar felt his side only to realize the cane wasn't there.

"Darn it." He said as he began to look for where he may have left it.

(())

Ren stood back up to his two feet as the White Fang recovered to their feet. As they did, Ren flies into the and performs a somersault kick on the first one. He turns to the next one and hits him with an uppercut, knocking him into the air. As he came back down, Ren hits him with a roundhouse uppercut with the opposite hand, sending him spinning into another guy. Another one runs toward him. Ren performs a front flip kick, sending the member into the ground, head first.

Another one charges him from the back. Ren turns around to face him and performs a back fist to side high kick, both times in the face. This knocked him out.

More of them closed in, Ren had distracted them to the point where no one heard the P.A.T.R.I.O.T walk out of the crate.

That was until it walked up to a small group, slammed its two fists together, spread its arms and spin around 4 times in a second and knocked around 10 of them away. This resulted in the White Fang turning to it.

"Shit, it's on!" One of them said. Ren grunted his teeth and held his head. Gritting in pain.

One of the larger White Fang members saw this and moved in. Swinging a large hammer, He aims for Ren's head. Without looking, Ren grabs the bat and tightens his grip and crushes the bat. Ren then picks the man up by his neck and slams him into the ground. He then brings back his fist, but strains to throw the punch.

Ren's conscious mind was attempting to take back its control over Ren's body. So, Ren decided to squeeze his grip. Choking the large fang member. Ren was soon knocked off of him by Ilia. Ren stands up to look at her with an angry expression.

" _Ren, please snap out of it._ " Ilia pleaded in thought. Ren ran towards her.

Ilia activates her whip and lashed at him. Ren sidestepped the attacks and lowers his head. That's when she saw Ren's head glow. Instinctively, she dodges and upon doing so, she hears a laser fly by. She behind her to see a crate had a large hole in it because of the laser. She turns back around to see Ren throw a punch that hits her in the face. She retaliates with a reverse roundhouse kick, but Ren ducks underneath it and kicks her in the knee. He then grabs her by the neck and lifts her off her feet. He looks into her eyes and grins. His smile slowly began to disappear. His scleras went back to going white, and his hands went back to being hands. The ink slowly began to disappear, as did his wings. He released Ilia and fell to his hands and knees. Ilia looked at Ren as his wings retracted. Ilia took this time to run off. As she ran, she looked at Ren with saddened eyes.

"Please. Be okay." She said.

(())

Blake fights off one of the White Fang members and knocks him out. She turns to see Ren on his hands and knee. She looks to see the White Fang still fighting the P.A.T.R.I.O.T. So she had some time to tend to him.

She slides to his side and holds him.

"Ren, please, be okay. Come on, you can do this." Blake said.

Ren grips the ground and his fingers pierce through the concrete.

" _I remain in control you beast! I refuse to let you control me! You won't control me!"_ Ren screamed in his head. He hears the beast in his head growl and fade away. Ren goes onto his knees and looks at the crate in front of him. He looked at his hands and clenched them and saw that he was in control now.

"Blake." Ren said looking at Blake.

The two then nod. The two then looked at the White Fang fighting the P.A.T.R.I.O.T. This is when they saw the tiger faunus, Ari holding onto the back of the P.A.T.R.I.O.T, and bringing his hand, which was pulsing with blue electricity, up and then slamming it into its back.

The P.A.T.R.I.O.T shuts down and then restarts, but with blue eyes instead of red. It then looks at Ren and Blake.

"Uh oh." Blake said. The P.A.T.R.I.O.T then cocks its fist back and aims at them. It fires it's fist at them, to which they barely dodged.

Ari smirked.

"That'll keep them busy, grab the rest of the du-. What the-" Ari said as A group of 8 come around the corner.

"Great, more pests." He grimaced as he jumped off the back of the robot.

"Hey big guy!" He said to the P.A.T.R.I.O.T. "Don't show them any mercy!" He said. The P.A.T.R.I.O.T walked towards the group of eight, disregarding Ren and Blake.

"The rest of you, get the dust!" Ari commaded.

"What is that thing?!" Sage asked.

"A very big robot that wants us dead." Jaune answered. As the robot got closer and picked up speed, Ren looked at the robot and ran towards it.

As it got close, CFVY and ABRN came around the corner.

[Cue- Tekken 6 ost: North Nature Park]

They saw the P.A.T.R.I.O.T and go wide eyed as it stopped at RWY, SSS, and JN and brought up its giant fist. As it brought it down, The group of 8 moved. Ren moved in front of where its fist was about to slam and caught the fist. The P.A.T.R.I.O.T was definitely bigger and stronger than any Atlesian Paladin, but somehow, Ren was about to stop its fist. Ren then slams the fist to the ground, and hand spins onto the fist. Upon landing, the P.A.T.R.I.O.T throws a punch with its other fist. Ren jumps over it and onto the P.A.T.R.I.O.T's chest. Ren then grabs its head, pulls it causing its neck to extend. The grabbed it by said neck and threw it over his shoulder as he descended to the ground. The P.A.T.R.I.O.T lands just in front of a crate, around 15 feet away from the group. They all looked in surprise.

"Now that was cool." Reese said before the P.A.T.R.I.O.T stood back up.

"The White Fang are getting away with the dust." Ren said.

"I think this thing is a bigger threat." Sun said.

"I'll deal with this." Ren said.

"Alone?! Are you insane?!" Weiss asked.

"I can handle this, trust me." Ren said. The P.A.T.R.I.O.T brought back the arm where the fist was already shot off and throws it at Ren. Ren blocks the punch. He looks at the others.

"Don't let them escape with the dust. Go!" Ren said. The 15 foot tall robot pushed against Ren, but to no avail.

"We won't let you fight that thing alone!" Coco said.

"I'll help him! You guys stop the White Fang!" Fox said as he activated his bladed tonfas.

"Are you sure?" Yatsuhashi asked.

"I'll be fine, just go!" Fox said as he ran to help Ren.

"Be careful Fox." Velvet said as she and the other's took off running. The P.A.T.R.I.O.T's missing fist soon turned into a minigun. Thinking quickly Ren jumps into the air and avoided the shots. It looked around and spotted Fox. The P.A.T.R.I.O.T slams its fist towards him. Fox jumps onto the fist and runs up its arm and jumps into the air. As he came down, Ren came down too with his StormFlower in his hands. Slashing in x formation, they slash each of the arms. Ren slashing at the arm with the fist, and Fox slashing at the minigun arm. They land on the opposite side of the P.A.T.R.I.O.T and the arm Ren cut sparked and fell off. As it hit the ground, the P.A.T.R.I.O.T stumbled back.

"Now it's just us and you." Ren said.

"Let's finish it off." Fox said. The P.A.T.R.I.O.T retaliates by firing its minigun at the two. They both jump onto crates to avoid the shots.

(())

Ari and the other White Fang members were attempting to leave with the dust in a bunch of airships. Ari sees the teens run into view. Some of the White Fang saw this too.

"Ugh, these damn kids are getting on my nerves." He said. The White Fang closest to the kids ran towards them. Ari looked around and laid his eyes onto another crate that was as large as the crate the P.A.T.R.I.O.T came out of, and a crate a little smaller. He brings up his hand, which was pulsing with blue electricity, and fired an electric pulse at both.

"That'll keep them busy when they wake up." Ari said. He placed another box into the bullhead and walked inside of it.

Arslan punches a White Fang member in the torso and kicks him away. She looks up to see some bullheads taking off.

"Great, some are getting away." Arslan said. Another White Fang member charges her, but Reese throws her hoverboard at her (The white fang member), and knocked her off her feet. Reese flips over Arslan and grabs her hoverboard, blocks a sword strike from another and knocks her away.

"They're thinning out. They're surprisingly easy to take down." Reese said. Arslan gets another White Fang member in an arm lock.

"Reese." Arslan said. She then throws the White Fang member into one of his comrades. "You just jinxed us."

"Oh, come on Arslan. You don't believe that nonsense do you?" Reese asked. On cue, a large thumping sound was heard, getting everyone's attention. A few seconds later, a robot arm punches open the crate door it was inside of open. It then walked out. It was another P.A.T.R.I.O.T.

Arslan glares at Reese.

"Well, at- at least it's just one." Reese stuttered. The P.A.T.R.I.O.T walked out further and a second P.A.T.R.I.O.T walked out after it and looked at the teens.

"Heh, uh oops?" Reese said. Arslan slapped the back of Reese's head. "Ow!"

"There's two of them now!?" Jaune said. A white fang member swings a sword at him. Jaune dodges and slams him in the face with his shield, knocking him down.

"We're gonna need a lot of firepower." Ruby said as they looked at the P.A.T.R.I. , which both turn to look at the teens.

(())

Fox and Ren look at the now dismantled P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Ren checks his StormFlower for any damage.

"That was easier than I expected." Fox said.

"She did say that it was a Prototype." Ren said. Fox looked at him with a confused expression.

"Who's she?" Fox asked. Ren remembered what he said and realized his mistake and had to play it off.

"N-no one. Let's just meet back up with the others. They might need our help." Ren said.

"What makes you say that?" Fox asked. Ren used his fingers to count backwards from 3. Upon reaching 1, an explosion was heard.

"Fair point." Fox said. The two of them quickly run towards the sound of the explosion.

(())

The P.A.T.R.I. weren't affected by Nora's explosive rounds. They just shook it off. Ren and Fox quickly regrouped with them. Fox shook his head in dismay.

"Of course. There's never just one prototype. I don't know what I expected." Fox said. Ren spun his StormFlower in his hands and ran towards his team.

[Cue- Rwby- New Challengers ost]

"Ren, Any ideas?" Ruby asked. Ren looked at Jaune.

"Team attacks." Ren said.

"Team attacks?" Coco asked, overhearing the conversation. Ruby smirked.

"Sugar Rush!" Ruby commanded. Ruby and Nora run towards one of the P.A.T.R.I. . Nora jumps on Ruby's scythe, flips into the air, and brings her hammer down on top of the P.A.T.R.I.O.T's head. Ruby came slashing at its torso. The P.A.T.R.I.O.T clashes its fists and spins around with its as arms extended. Nora and Ruby used there weapons to block the attack. Ruby flips to her feet and cocks Cresent Rose.

"Martial Arcs!" Ruby said. Ren and Jaune rushed forward. They began slashing at the P.A.T.R.I.O.T's feet, causing it to back up. The second P.A.T.R.I.O.T sees this and shoots its left fist at them. Jaune back dashes as Ren flips into the air, avoiding the fist. Jaune lifts his shield above his head as Ren landed on it. Jaune then jumps, pushing Ren into the air. Ren flips towards the P.A.T.R.I.O.T and jams the blade end of his StormFlower into its right eye. Seeing this, Coco and Arslan looked at the second P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Realizing they needed to take care of the other one, Coco activated her minigun and began to fire at it.

Ren jumps off the P.A.T.R.I.O.T and lands next to Jaune. The P.A.T.R.I.O.T seemingly went kneeled and opened its back. Missiles began to fly into the air. Jaune ran back to avoid them as Ren performed well-timed gymnastic handsprings to do the same. While Jaune's back was toward, the P.A.T.R.I.O.T shot out its left fist. Jaune brought up his shield and blocked the fist, but the force knocked him back. The P.A.T.R.I.O.T kneeled again and fired more missiles. Ren saw this and readied his StormFlower.

"Lightning Lotus!" Ren called. Nora runs by his side and turns her Magnhild into its grenade launcher form. They both fired at the missiles, destroying them all before the where even close to hitting the ground. After the last missile was blown up, Ruby ran past them and towards the P.A.T.R.I.O.T.

"Lotus Petals!" Ruby said. Ruby uses Crescent Rose to project herself past the P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Ren slashes at the P.A.T.R.I.O.T's legs as he dashed back and forward. Ruby does the same.

The duo switch back and forth repeatedly, slashing at the P.A.T.R.I.O.T's legs with each pass. The P.A.T.R.I.O.T tries to shot its minigun at Ruby, she jumps into the air and dodges it. She and Ren strike down with the moon behind them, slicing off the P.A.T.R.I.O.T's left arm. The weight of its right arm caused it to lean and nearly fall in that direction.

It tries to stand back up and looked at The group of four.

"Bomb Shield!" Ren and Ruby said. Jaune runs towards the robot and jumps onto the P.A.T.R.I.O.T and jumps into the air. He shoves his sword into the P.A.T.R.I.O.T's head, he jumps off and Nora swings her hammer and hits the sword, knocking it through the P.A.T.R.I.O.T's head and destroying it completely. The P.A.T.R.I.O.T's body hit the ground. 

"We did it!" Ruby said as she hugged Ren's side. Ren looked at her with a raised eyebrow. Ruby flushes and lets go.

"Sorry." She said. They looked over to the second P.A.T.R.I.O.T get destroyed by a punch to the face from Fox after being frozen by Weiss' Myrtenaster. Ren saw that Coco was on the ground, either from exhaustion or from being knocked down. Regardless, he walked over and offered a hand.

Coco sees who it was offering her hand, smirks and accepts the lift.

"Thanks pretty boy." She said as she was helped to her feet.

"Say, aren't you the guy who threw that first robot?" Coco asked. Ren scratched his head in slight nervousness.

"Yes. I did." Ren said.

"You're pretty strong. Hey, can you do me a favor?" Coco asked. Ren shrugged as if to say why not.

"Can you hold this for me?" Coco asked handing him her handbag. Ren holds out his hand and takes the handbag. Surprisingly, he didn't topple over.

"Wow, you're very strong." Coco complimented.

"Um… Thanks."

"Well, since you're holding my gun, it would only be fair is I held yours." She said. Before Ren could question anything that was just said Coco wrapped her arms around his arms.

Ruby, Nora, Blake and Yang all glared at her direction.

"Hey handsome. Don't leave me out of this." Reese said walking over to hug his other arm.

Jaune looked at Nora and saw the murder in her eyes. She looked like she was gonna kill someone.

"Um… We still have a problem." Fox came over and said.

"We do? Because I'm sure there's nothing else that could be a threat." Reese said. She felt Arslan's glare come in her direction.

Seconds later, they hear the crate directly in front of them be torn open. Inside of said crates were a large group of robots. Atlesian Knights to be exact.

"Reese." Arslan gritted her teeth. Reese lets go of Ren's arm and looks at the group of robots. As did Coco. Reese gives a nervous smile.

"You ever notice that whenever you talk you make things worse?" Bolin asked. Reese was gonna say something, but just stopped.

Ren hands Coco her bag and takes off his StormFlower.

"This has been a long day." He said before he and the other hunters charged towards the knights, who were charging at them. Lotus was the first one to attack a knight.

(())

Ren uses his StormFlower to cut off the head of the last Knight. After doing so he slumps over. Nearly passing out on the ground. Everyone was tired, except Lotus. Who was playing one of the Atlesian knight's dismantled arm.

Ren put his StormFlower at his side. He looks at the dismantled robots that surrounded every one of them.

He sighs, then he hears sirens. He looks to see over to see police motorcycles drive up to the area.

One of them got off of the motorcycle and walked towards the teens. Cautiously walking over the dismantled robots, and made his way to Ren.

"This place is a mess." He said.

"My apologizes. They attacked us." Ren said.

"Must be Ari's work. The guy's always turning our electronics against us." The officer said. Ren took a note of that name.

"Well, we'll take it away from here. You guys can leave." He said. Ren was gonna walk away, but the officer stopped him.

"Wait. Are you, Lie Ren?" He asked. Ren nodded. The officer gives him a bag.

"Some girl told me to give this to you." He said. Ren accepted the bag and looked inside. He reached in the bag and pulled out some kind of gauntlets.

They weren't like Ember Celica. They looked like they were combined with padded gloves. The padded side was red, while the fabric of the actual gloves themselves are black. There was also a metallic lotus on the padded side of both the gloves and the gauntlets shaped in a triangular design. They also had bulky armguards that would cover his forearms. They also seemed to be detachable. The armguards also seem added red 'spikes' or 'horns' protruding around the area his elbow would be.

Ren puts them back in the bag and begins to head back to the hotel. Tiredly.

(())

Qrow barges into a room Lionheart happened to be in.

"Qrow? What are you-"

"The relic is missing." Qrow interrupted. Lionheart went wide eyed.

"What?!" Lionheart exclaimed.

"The relic is gone. Oscar said it wasn't in your office." Qrow explained. Lionheart went wide eyed.

"This can't be good." Lionheart said.

"You're damn right this can't be good. How could you let this happen?" Qrow asked.

"I did not let this happen." Lionheart angrily said.

"You said it yourself, you finished talking to one of her informants. You knew she was after that relic, and you did nothing to prevent it. You better come up with something, and it needs to be fast." Qrow said. Lionheart sat in his seat and looked a black feather, framed on his wall.

"Can you send him here the next time you see him?" He requested. Qrow was confused for a moment.

"What have you got planned?" Qrow asked.

"A way to get the relic back. If it works." Lionheart said. Qrow rolls his eyes and proceeds to walk out of the room.

"For the sake of your kingdom, it better work." Qrow said as he closed the door on the way out.

Lionheart groaned.

(())

The 18 students tiredly and sorely walked back from the harbor. The law enforcements have long arrived for investigation and dismissed them from the scene.

Lotus ran towards Ren with an Atlesian Knight's arm in his mouth. He jumps on Ren a little, causing Ren to take the arm out of his mouth and throws it forward, towards the direction they were walking. Lotus chases after it.

Nora was leaning against Ren as she was very exhausted.

They arrive to the hotel to see Neptune standing at the hotel entrance. He looks up and sees everyone.

" have you been? I've been waiting for hours." Neptune asked.

"Neptune. We were at the harbor. Didn't you hear the… ugh. Nevermind. Let's just head inside." Sun said.

"We're gonna head back into our place." Arslan said.

"Okay, thanks for your help." Ruby said.

"Don't mention it. If you ever need a helping hand, we're always available." Nadir said.

"Hey, can I borrow your scroll for a second?" Reese asked Ren. Ren pulled out his scroll and handed to her. Reese then pulled out hers and exchanged looks from both scrolls while pressing away. She then hands him back the scroll.

"Here you go. Be sure to call me." She said gesturing the call me hand signal. Then Arslan walked up to him.

"You wouldn't mind if I put mine in there too would you?" She asked. Ren hands her the scroll too. She does the same. Nora squeezed Ren's arm in slight frustration.

Arslan gives him back the scroll.

"Don't forget to call. Okay?" Arslan asked.

"Sure, and Nora?" Ren called.

"Hmm?" Nora asked.

"You're kind of cutting the circulation off from my arm. Please loosen your grip." He requested. Nora quickly lets go with a gasp.

"Sorry." Nora said.

"It's okay." Ren reassured.

"Come on, let's get some sleep." Ruby said.

"We're gonna rent our room." Coco said.

"Okay, see you later." Ruby said.

"Bye." Velvet said waving as they walked through the doors.

(())

As team RNJR walked through the door, Ren walked over and just collapsed onto the bed. Not even bothering to put the cover on, or changing into pajamas. Lotus quickly jumped onto the bed and placed himself under his arm.

Ruby, Nora and Jaune all did the same thing. Collapsing onto the beds, hoping that morning would take its sweet time.

All the while, Oscar had been knocking on the door, with no response.

"They're not answering Ozpin."

" _They're probably tired. When they wake up we'll try in the morning._ "

"Got it." Oscar said as he walked off.

" _Also. Don't forget my cane next time._ " Oscar groaned.

"I'll get used to this thing being by my side." Oscar said.

" _You're supposed to walk with it._ " Ozpin said.

"Not happening."

(())

Four hours, or in Ren's feeling, two minutes after falling asleep, Ren's scroll vibrated.

He groans and wakes up to open his scroll. After suffering the blinding light, he sees he received a text from Raven.

'We need to talk.' Raven's text said.

'Now?' Ren asked looking at the time. It was 02:23 am.

'Yes, Now. Meet me on the roof.' Raven's text said. Ren groans and sits up.

"Damn." Ren said as he looked at his sleeping team.

He then rolls eyes and kept it quiet as he got out of bed. He walks out of the room and slowly closed the door behind him. After quietly closing the door, he turned around and before he could walk, he saw Fox Alistair with a glass of milk in his hand. Both of them froze.

"Hey." Ren said.

"Hey." Fox replied. Ren looked at the glass of milk in his hand.

"Thirsty?" He asked.

"No." Fox said. As if sensing Ren's confusion, he spoke up again. "It's for Velv. She gets thirsty at night."

"Oh, okay." Ren said understanding. The two then continued walking. As Ren turned the corner, he heard the door open.

He turns around to see Fox open his team room's door and walk in. Ren then continued walking.

However, he didn't notice Yang peeking out of her room and seeing him turn the corner. She follows him from distance.

He makes it to the roof with a rather annoyed look on his face. He meets up with Raven, who was looking at Mistral from the roof.

"What is it we need to talk about a 2 in the morning Raven? Was it too much trouble to wait at least until dawn?" Ren asked. Raven turned to him.

"Do you consider the missing Relic too much trouble?" Raven asked. Ren was gonna say something, but shut his mouth.

"I apologize that your beauty sleep has been delayed, but it's important that we talk about how to get that relic back." Raven said.

"That can come later Raven, but you owe me an explanation Raven." Ren said. Raven looked at him with impatience.

"What explanation do I owe you?" Raven said.

"You can start with the bandits." Ren asked. Raven's eyes went wide.

"H-how did you know about the-"

"Wise words from a dusty old crow. He told me about the murders and thieves known your family. And if I didn't know any better, I'd say they had something to do with Shion." Ren said. He was completely bluffing, but he needed to in order to get his answers. Raven exhaled and looked away from Ren.

"Fine. You want to know about my tribe? I'll tell you. But it won't be here."

"You're keeping me from sleep right now. It's either that explanation, or none."

"For your protection and mine, we can't talk here."

Ren turned towards the door.

"Then you'll have to wait till dawn." He said walking away.

"Hey! Don't walk away from me!" She said chasing after him. Before she could say anything else, she tripped on a small crack in the roof.

"And why-" Ren was tackled to the ground by Raven.

(())

Yang slowly opened the door to the rooftop Ren walked through and peeks through the crack. Her face turns beet red at what she saw on the other side.

(())

 **That's all folks.**

 **I hope you enjoyed the chapter as much as I did making it. Also, Ren's new gloves are a referrence to Jin Kazama.**

 **And a shout out to SaturnNights for some of the ideas and inspirations.**

 **And with that, I'm out.**


	12. The Butterfly Effect

Chapter 12: The Butterfly Effect

 **A/N: There's a vote opportunity at the end of the chapter. Make sure you vote.**

Tyrian ran to building where he saw Arthur waiting for him. He slides to a halt and looks at Arthur.

"Is there a reason you contacted me?" Tyrian asked with slight irritation in his voice.

Arthur pulls out the relic. Tyrian looked as if he wasn't impressed.

"Salem tells me you're after a wielder of the dark angel's power. I may be of assistance." He explained.

"Oh… Do tell." Tyrian requested with a menacing smile.

"Lionheart is going to send him to come retrieve the relic. We have more than enough time to set up a trap and get ready for when he does." He said.

"But, what about the rose?" Tyrian asked.

"She can come later. We take them one at a time. Right now, we concentrate on the Yami no tenshi. Come now, we have work to do." Arthur said walking into the building.

(())

Raven's eyes locked onto Ren's with shock. This was an awkward position to be in.

She had landed on top of Ren, and was currently locking lips with him. The real awkward part, was that they hadn't moved, in a minute and a half.

Ren didn't have a choice, but why Raven remained on top of him, with her lips still pressed against his, was an absolute mystery.

Finally, she lifts herself up, with her cheeks a slight pink color. She sits up and looks away with slight embarrassment, and pink cheeks.

"This never happened." Raven said with a threatening side glare. Ren said nothing. Raven looked at him, with said threatening glare, only to see him look at her, then his groin area, then back at her. Twice.

Raven didn't catch the hint until she looked down to see that she was sitting on his crotch area. She quickly jumps off and takes a few steps back. She crosses her arms, looked away, and blushes even harder.

"Let me guess. Never happened?" Ren asked as he stood up.

"Not a word to anyone. Especially my brother." Raven said.

"Understood." Ren said.

"Listen. Since you want to catch up on sleep, The relic is missing. Lionheart's probably gonna ask you to fetch it for him." Raven explained.

"So that's what it meant by, the relic's in danger." Ren thought.

"There's only one person I know who could've been after that relic." Raven said. Ren looked back at a previous conversation.

"Salem, right?" Ren asked.

"Yea. You've got a good memory, I'll give you that." Raven said. "If you decide to go and look for it, are you gonna have someone coming with you, or will I be assisting you?" She asked. Ren raised an eyebrow. She asked that in a completely different tone.

(())

Yang, whom was listening from the other side of the door, turns beet red again.

"Did she just-" She began to think. Her mind slowly went to a place not even she was sure she'd go. But the way her mother asked that question made her wonder.

(())

"What?" Ren asked.

"Will you need my assistance?" She asked a second time. Ren took notice that she didn't lose her patience from him asking her to repeat herself like she normally does.

"I don't know. But I'll let you know if I do." Ren said. Raven nodded. She took out her sword.

"Remember Ren, we'll talk about the bandits later, but my presence needs to remain a secret." She said as she made her portal and walked through. Ren simply nodded and proceeded to walk towards the door. He then stopped upon realizing something.

(())

Yang saw Ren stop walking and quickly took this time to book it.

Upon running back, she stopped to look where she had just ran from.

"I'll talk to my mother, one way, or another." She said as she walked into her room.

(())

Ren looked at the top of where the door was. He saw the security camera. He thought about what Raven said. Her presence needed to remain a secret. Ren takes his StormFlower and throws it. The StormFlower curves and stabs the camera.

The StormFlower cuts through the camera and boomerangs back into his hand. He puts the StormFlower back to his side and proceeded to walk away. The broken camera sparked and crackled as he walked away.

(())

Ren made his way back to his dorm.

"Hey, kid." Qrow called. Ren grits his teeth, shakes it off, and then turns around.

"Yea?" Ren asked.

"What's go you up?" He asked. Ren remained silent for a second. This gave Qrow a little confirmation.

"Oh, I see. Late night chat with my sister, huh?" He asked. Ren simply nodded.

"Well, Lionheart would like a word with you, but I'd assume you're pretty tired. So, I'll tell him I haven't seen you. Get some sleep though, I'll be at your dorm at 5:00 to grab you." Qrow explained.

"5:00? That's in less than three hours." Ren pointed out.

"I know, but Lionheart wants to see you first. He has a mission for you. So get some sleep." Qrow explained. Ren nodded and went back to his room.

Upon walking into the room, Ren saw that Lotus had taken the middle of the bed. Ren groaned and just took the far left side.

His left leg dangled off the bed, but it was good enough for him. He then drifts off to sleep.

(Dream Sequence)

Ren woke up in an unfamiliar place. He stands to his feet and looked around. The area he was in looked oddly familiar. It looked like Vale, but….. After the fall of Beacon.

Ren then turned to look at a statue. The statue was featuring two figures, one a male and the other a younger-looking female, standing on a rock outcropping. They are both dressed in a robe with hoods over their heads.

This was confirmation needed to realize he was at Beacon. But why was he here? What was he dreaming about this place for?

He heard wings flapping. Thinking quickly, he grabbed his StormFlower and turned around. He sees a Nevermore flying his way. Before he could do anything, his winged counterpart flew onto its head, grabbed its beak and ripped its upper jaw off. The Nevermore's disintegrating body crashes in front of Ren. As it completely disintegrated, his Winged counterpart looked at him.

"Is this another attempt at taking over my body?" Ren asked.

"No." His winged counterpart said. That echoey demonic voice drilled into his head like a migraine.

"Arrgh!" Ren said.

"Something the matter?" Other Ren asked.

"Your voice. It's the definition of a headache." Ren explained. Other Ren looked at him with a confused look.

"Would this be better?" Other Ren said, this time sounding like Nora. This creeped Ren out a little.

"No, absolutely not. You can go back to your old voice. Just lower the volume." Ren said.

"Right." Other Ren said. His voice back to normal, but the volume lowered.

"So, why did you try to take over my body? Twice?" Ren decided to ask.

"Under the command of Azazel. I must control the specimen that I have been assigned to." Other Ren explained.

"Azazel? Is he the root of the Yami no Tenshi?"

"No, he is merely a fragment of the Yami no Tenshi. Those who hold the Tatsu ranks answer to him." Other Ren explained. Then he looked at Ren.

"But you're different. You….. You refuse to answer to him. And now, I do as well." He continued. Ren was a little surprised at what was said.

"Why is that?" Ren asked.

"You seem stronger than Azazel. You refuse to let me take over your mind, and overpowered me when I tried to do so by force. Twice." Other Ren explained.

"I thought the Dragon- er, Tatsu ranks were the hardest to take control of." Ren said.

"You're of the descendant of Ketsueki Ren. His blood suppresses the best way to gain control over someone. Through their blood. If one cannot corrupt the brain, we'll corrupt the limbs until we can get to the brain. And since that can't be done with you." Other Ren got on one knee.

"I am of service to you." He said putting a closed fist to his left shoulder and bowed.

Ren was a little uncomfortable with this. But, he bowed back. Other Ren stood up.

"Is it okay if I ask you some questions?" Ren asked. Other Ren nodded.

"Raven told me, the the stronger I get, the more power you gives me. Is that true?" Ren ask. Other Ren walked over to Ren and placed a hand on his shoulder.

Ren was confused as to why. Until Other Ren used his other hand and used five fingers, which were claws, and punctured the left side of his torso.

(())

Ren jolted up, clenching his side in pain. He looked at his hand as he felt blood drip out. His hand was red from his own blood. But what happened next, shocked him.

The skin that was punctured soon closed. Ren looked in shock as it happened.

"Something like that." Other Ren said in Ren's head. Ren felt a cramp in his left side.

"What was that for?" Ren silently asked, carefully not to wake his team up.

"To show you another power that you possess." He said. Ren was going to complain again, but the word 'another' stopped him.

"Another?" Ren . On cue, his free hand, sparked with black electricity. Looking at his hand and it sparked, he grew curious as to what it was.

"This is your electrokinesis. You can utilize this in combat at any given notice." Other Ren said. The sparking stopped, and Ren looked at the front and the back of his hand.

"So, what you're telling me is that I can conduct my own electric current?" Ren asked.

"Yes. It also makes you immune to electric attacks."

"So…. Basically, you turned me into Nora." Ren said. A silence between them occurs.

"Would you like me to change it?" Other Ren asked.

"You can do that?" Ren asked with a surprised look on his face. A few seconds later, Ren felt his arm stiffen. Then it felt like he was in control again. Then he suddenly felt tired.

"What-" Ren shook his head to wake himself up. "What was that?" Ren asked.

"I exchanged your Electrokinesis for something much more…. Suitable for you." Other Ren said. Ren was confused again.

"What?"

"Semblance Dispel."

"Semblance Dispel?" Ren asked.

"Yes. If one has a Semblance that affects you, you won't be harmed, or affected." Other Ren said. Ren thought that through.

"Does that also include-" Ren was interrupted by a knocking on the door.

"Kid, get up. It's time to go see Lionheart." Qrow's voice said. Ren looked at the time. It was 5:17. He groaned and stood up. Lotus woke up and walked with him to the door.

Ren opens the door and saw Qrow drinking out of a flask.

"Come on, Lionheart needs to talk to you. You might want to grab your weapons." Qrow said.

"Right." Ren said. He went over and grabbed his StormFlower and walked towards the door. He walks past the bag with the gauntlets. He looks at it, thinks about it, then takes them and puts them on.

The gauntlets fit on his arms tightly, yet loose enough for comfort. They were also pretty light, so combat would be easy.

Ren walked over to the door and met with Qrow. Qrow noticed the gauntlets.

"That's a nice look." Qrow commented.

"Thanks." Ren said.

"Come on, we're already late." Qrow said leading the way. Ren followed behind.

As they walked, Qrow looked back at Ren.

"So, has the Yami no Tenshi been giving you trouble?" He asked.

"Not as off lately." Ren said.

"Good to hear. You've got some strong will with you, so I'm not surprised." Qrow said. Ren smiled in response.

"You know, I've encountered a Yami no Tenshi before. I know how dangerous they can be." Qrow said. Ren was shocked at this.

"Really?" Ren asked.

"Yea. Around twenty years ago. Short stack and I were responding to a distress call in a village called Amaris." Qrow said.

"Amaris? I've never heard of that one?" Ren said.

"That's because it's gone." Qrow explained. "You see kid, There wasn't always four continents. There used to be five. Sanus, Solitas, Anima, Menagerie, and Linux. Linux was home to the kingdom, Sentinel. However, they had fallen off the map, because of the Yami no Tenshi." Qrow explained. Ren was invested into this information. He needed to know about the power he now possessed.

"One day, Short stack and I responded to a distress call, and when we arrived to Amaris, we were surprised to find one of the villagers still alive. He was in agony. Screaming, yelling, and scratching at his head. We went to see what was wrong, and he warned us to stay back. But, we didn't listen. Big mistake on our part." Qrow said. Ren listened closer as they walked.

"When we refused to leave without helping him, he sprouted wings, grew some claws and a third eye appeared on his head. Then, he attacked us." Qrow explained. In the back of his head, Qrow saw himself in the grip of a man blood red tears in his eyes, his other clawed hand, brought back, ready to strike.

"If it wasn't for Short Stack, I would be gone. Her Silver eyes gave us what we needed to escape. But Sentinel couldn't be saved." Qrow finished. Ren was quite shocked at what he heard. A fifth kingdom from long ago? Why wasn't he taught about this? Why wasn't anyone else informed? But most importantly, who else had the Silver eyes?

"You said uh…. Short Stack had Silver eyes, right?" Ren asked. Qrow realized his slip up.

"Right, sorry. Her name's not Short Stack, it's Summer. And yes, she possessed the Silver eyes." Qrow said.

"Summer?" Ren asked.

"Ruby's mother. Her Silver eyes passed down to her daughter." Qrow explained. They got close to Lionheart's office.

"We're almost there kid." Qrow said. Ren nodded. As they got closer to the office, Ren grew a little more curious.

"What happened next?" Ren asked.

"We escaped. We were no match for it. It also didn't help that we discovered that when the Silver eyed warriors were the only hunters around, and they preferred to stay away from them. They're extremely dangerous as less than ten of them manage to sink an entire continent." Qrow said. Ren felt his heart drop upon hearing that. An entire continent? Why did the Black Claw associate themselves with a force as dangerous as this? What could they possibly gain from it?

They arrive to Lionheart's office. As soon as they reached the door, Lionheart opened it.

"Mr. Ren. You're late." Lionheart said.

"I'm not a morning person." Ren replied. Ren walked into the office. Qrow and Lotus were going to follow, but Lionheart stopped them.

"He'll be out soon. I'll keep it brief." Lionheart said. Before Qrow could say anything, Lionheart closed the door. Qrow and Lotus looked at each other then at the door.

(())

Lionheart walks over to his desk and sits down.

"Please, Mr. Ren, have a seat." He said. Ren took a seat in front of Lionheart's desk.

"Has Qrow filled you in on what I needed you for?" Lionheart asked.

"He told me that you had a mission for me. Right?" Ren asked.

"That is correct." Lionheart started. He pulls out a bottle labeled gin, and two glasses.

"But he left it up to me to fill you in. Now I see why he stopped teaching." He said as he poured the gin into the glasses. He then passes one to Ren.

"Um, Sir, You are aware that-"

"You're a minor, yes. But this is an exception." Lionheart said taking a sip. Ren does the same.

After finishing his drink, Lionheart looks at Ren.

"Lie Ren. My kingdom is in danger. The relic has been stolen." Lionheart said. Ren wasn't surprised, as his other voice has been telling him the relic wasn't safe.

"I made the reckless mistake of leaving one of the Relics completely unguarded. And one of those snakes grabbed it. My kingdom is under enough chaos." Lionheart explained.

"Under Chaos?" Ren asked.

"Ever since what happened at beacon. Watching that poor girl be ripped to pieces, Atlesian Knights, attacking the citizens of Vale. It brought a lot of negativity. That negativity brought Grimm. And since Mistral's territory is the widest reaching in the world, you know, and that makes it infinitely harder to protect. We lost so many great Huntsmen, teachers from this very institution. And it's only gotten worse." Lionheart explained. Ren's eyes showed an expression of sorrow.

"But... that's not why I have you here." Lionheart said.

"Right. You want me to retrieve the recover the stolen relic." Ren clarified.

"That's right." Lionheart said. He puts his glass down and walks over to the window.

"Where do I start looking?" Ren asked.

"Before I give you a location, I need to ask you. Do you have anyone coming with you?" He asked.

"Not at the moment." Ren said.

"Well, whether you decide to bring someone or not, start looking at the base Citadel to the north. The key to open get the relic was hidden there. And it's not easy to get there. Start investigating there, and give any intel on the missing relic to me. But make sure you get that relic back." Lionheart explained.

"Do the others know about this?" Ren asked.

"Not yet. I'll fill them in later. When they wake up. You may want to get started on the mission." Lionheart said. Ren nodded, finished his glass and proceeded to leave the room. As he walked out and closed the door behind him, a holographic w appeared on Lionheart's desk.

"Oh, Leo. We have got to work on your improvisational skills." Arthur Watt's voice said.

"Just be ready for when he drops by. I've got enough food on my plate." Lionheart replied.

"Don't forget about your end of the bargain."

"I won't." Lionheart said. The holographic w disappeared. Lionheart groans, and pours himself another glass of gin.

(())

At the Atlas Military base, Ironwood and Winter made their way to a small airship. A blonde haired male with green eyes ran towards them.

He stops at Ironwood.

"Sir." He said saluting. "Your ship is ready."

"Good to hear." Ironwood said. The soldier drops his salute.

"Um, sir. I have other news." The soldier said. Ironwood looked at Winter.

"Tell the pilot to prepare the ship for takeoff." Ironwood said. Winter nods and walks into the ship.

"Proceed Aiden." Ironwood said.

"Well, Professor Polendina has confirmed that the second version is ready." Aiden explained. Ironwood raised an eyebrow. "And…. he'd like you to run the testing."

Ironwood turned away from Aiden, and looked at his ship. Aiden took his silence for an answer.

"Right, I'll tell him you said-"

"Bring her with me." Ironwood said.

"What?"

"I said, bring her with me. I'd like to run those tests, personally." Ironwood said. Aiden went silent for a moment, and then he nodded.

"Yes, right away sir." Aiden said. He ran off and returned with a young girl, around 5'5", with short, rather curly orange hair with a small ahoge on top that came down to her chin, and she wore a pink bow on the back of her head. She also had bright green eyes, light skin and freckles. She wore a whitish-gray old-fashioned blouse with short gray feminine overalls, as well as a black and green collar with a matching pair of stockings.

Upon walking with Aiden to Ironwood, she stands with her hands behind her back.

"Alright Penny, This is Ironwood. He'll be the one testing you okay?" Aiden said. Penny nods her head. She then looks at Ironwood and stands with her arms at her side.

"Orders sir?" She asked.

"Get in the ship. We're going to Mistral." Ironwood said.

"Yes sir." She said as she went onto the ship. Ironwood sighed as she walked onto the ship.

"Sir. Another situation is afoot. Our forces are starting to have a hard time with Frozen Forest. I have a solution though sir. If we could-"

"Pull our forces out. Operation Frozen Forest is hereby disavowed." Ironwood said. Aiden was shocked.

"B-but sir. The Schnee dust company."

"Are no longer associated with us. I have officially cut ties with them. Alert Lieutenant Seren. Tell her my orders are to pull out of the operation." Ironwood said. A stunned Aiden watched as he got onto the ship and the ship's door closes. The ship then took off.

Aiden then pulls out his scroll.

"Sarge. Connect me to Lieutenant Seren. General's orders." He said.

(())

Ren was in his room with Lotus. He checked his StormFlower, and put them at his side. Lotus watched whilst wagging his tail.

Ren checked for everything and looked at his team, who were still asleep. He goes to the door and proceeds to walk out. Lotus quickly runs out the door with him.

Ren silently closes the door. As he turned around he sees the Fox had done the exact same thing he did. Silently close the door and turn around. They freeze again. Ren then saw the Fox had his weapons on.

"Hey." Fox said.

"Hey." Ren replied.

"Where are you going?" Fox asked.

"I'm headed to the Citadel. Lionheart assigned me a mission." Ren explained.

"A mission?" Fox asked. Ren nods in response.

"By yourself?" Fox asked. Ren nods again.

"You got room for one more?" Fox asked.

"Yes, but are you sure you want to come along?" Ren asked.

"Not a wise choice going by yourself on a mission. It's nice to have someone watching your back." Fox said. Ren couldn't disagree there.

"Alright. Come on." Ren said. Fox walked with them as they left.

"So, what's this mission you've been assigned?" Fox asked.

"I'll fill you in on the way there." Ren said.

(())

Kobura made his way to a temple like village. The village could only be best described as a barren wasteland, with rocky terrain and the sky was stained a dark red. He walks over to a young male with a pale white skin complextion and a scar going down his neck.

"Brock." He called. The male looks in his direction.

"Kobura." Brock replied.

"I have an assignment for you. It involves a Rogue Tatsu." Kobura started. Brock smirked. Ink remsembling that of a tribal badger tattoo appeared on his face.

"By all means do tell." He said.

(())

 **That's gonna be all for this chapter. School's been a Bitch to me, so this took longer than expected.**

 **So, how's about a little voting? Eh? A litte poll.**

 **For this voting, I'd like you to vote on Four Girls that you desire to be shipped with Ren.**

 **There's a total of 13 girls in the harem, and some of them have yet to be named. Who knows, I might expand it.**

 **So here's how it works.**

 **Pick a name. And plant a number in front of them and do it four times from one to four and vote.**

 **Example- 1: Nora, 2: Yang, 3: Ilia, 4: Blake**

 **Bonus points if you come up with a creative name for the ship in the HaRen.**

 **Also, The semblance dispel ability is a reference to one of my favorite stories, Lotus Prince. Which is also a HaRen story.**

 **The one(s) with the most votes, or the most interesting name(s) gets a special prize.**

 **If yours doesn't win, don't worry. Something special awaits for you.**

 **And with that I'm out.**


	13. Voting Info

**This isn't a chapter, sadly. This is here, because I have more voting opportunities.**

 **There are a total of 3 voting ops. One of which you already know about.**

 **The first one you know nothing about is, Which of these would you like as Fox Alistair's semblance?**

 **Concussive Force**

 **Defense Reduction**

 **or Via Kitsune.**

 **The second question is-**

 **Fox: They probably don't know what that last one is.**

 **Huh? Oh, right. Via Kitsune is like Sun's semblance, but instead of clones, it's a kitsune. A nine tailed fox from Japanese Folklore.**

 **(())**

 **The second is more of a best name contest. If more than one person comes up with a good name, I'll have a voting between them.**

 **(())**

 **The third on is the of course the Harem girls. You can only vote 4 times though.**

 **So far, Ilia is winning with three votes. Raven, Blake and Yang are in second place with 2 votes and Ruby and Nora are in third with one vote. Everyone else is tied in fourth.**

 **Coco: Wait, all of us are in fourth?**

 **Yea, you're still part of the ha-**

 **Coco: Come on guys, Pretty boy's the Prize, let me get him.**

 **Reese: I've gotta pay him back for saving my board. Show a girl some support.**

 **Arslan: I know a handsome guy like Ren would like a tough girl. Mind letting me get some of that-**

 **Nora and Yang: Ahem!**

 **Blake: Wait... Ilia's WINNING!?**

 **Uh...**

 **Blake: I need those votes. Now! She can't have him before me!**

 **Ruby: Who said that you could have him?**

 **Uh oh, things aren't looking to good here.**

 **Emerald, Neo, the twins: *walk into the room***

 **All the girls: *Look their way, soon they glare***

 **I'd start running if I were you.**

 **Emerald: Wrong room. *Runs off***

 **Ruby: *Grabs scythe* Oh no you don't! *Chases her***

 **Melanie: Did we miss something?**

 **Militia: I don't know.**

 **Neo: *slowly backs out of the room***

 **Let's leave before they start tearing each other apart.**

 **Also tell me what kind of fanservice you'd like to see.**

 **Nothing too sexual, keeping this as T rated as possible, and with that I'm-**

 **Velvet: *peeks inside* Where's the bathroom?**

 **Down the hall to the left.**

 **Velvet: Thank you. Hi Fox.**

 **Fox: Hey Velv.**

 **And with that, I'm-**

 **Cinder: Um, when do I-**

 **Next chapter.**

 **Cinder: Thanks.**

 **And with** _ **THAT,**_ **I'm-**

 **Qrow: The bar's out of Whiskey**

 **LET ME END THE NOTE SO I COULD WORK ON THE NEXT CHAPTER!**

 **Everyone: *fearful silence***

 **Sorry... And with that, I'm-**

 **Ren: The Yaguar escaped**

 **SON OF A-**


	14. Relic Recovery

Chapter 13: Relic Recovery

Ren, Lotus and Fox were walking through Mistral. The walked in the direction of the Citadel location. Ren was filling Fox in on his mission.

"Okay, so let me get this straight. The relic was stolen, Lionheart sent you to retrieve it and you speculated that the reason he did so was because you have been possessed by some destructive and deadly power?" Fox asked.

"That's about the gist of it, yes." Ren said.

"What did you say that it was called?" Fox asked.

"The Yami no tenshi."

"Yami no tenshi? That's uh…. Angel of Darkness right?" Fox asked. Ren looked at Fox in minor surprise.

"I didn't know you spoke Tsubakenese." Ren said. (My name for the Remnant version of Japanese)

"My dad taught me. Said something about ladies liking a man who speaks a second language." Fox said. Ren chuckled.

"Was he correct?"

"No he wasn't. It did help me with some extra lien as a translator." Fox said with a chuckle.

"That's good. At least you get something out of it." Ren said.

"Way to see it on the positive side." Fox said. The three (Lotus) continued their walk to the citadel. They manage see a semi gigantic pagoda straight ahead.

"Think that's the citadel?" Fox asked. Ren walks forward and saw a sign that said, 'シタデル'.

"Yea, this is it." Ren confirmed.

"I saw the sign." Fox said. Ren looked at him with yet another confused look.

"Wait, you can see?" Ren asked.

"Not really." Fox replied.

"Then how did you read the sign?" Ren asked.

"I use echolocation in order to see things. The words aren't written on the sign though. They're attached so I can read it." Fox explained.

"That's an impressive use echolocation." Ren said.

"Growing up in Vacuo with blindness will do that to you. Seriously, having blindness is like a death sentence there." Fox said. Ren chuckled at that. The three walked to the Citadel and walk through the door. Inside of the Citadel were pillars holding the place up, multiple floors and multiple paintings.

Fox whistled, then he waits 3 seconds.

"This place looks like something out of Fullmetal Nephilim."

"How do you-" As if knowing he'll answer, he stopped to let Fox answer.

"Velvet likes anime and she describes the scenes to me, this was one of the season 2 settings." Fox said. Ren walked over to one of the paintings.

"Season 2 episode 27. It's nice of Velvet to describe the anime to you." Ren said.

"Yea, she's sweet like that. Mind if I take some pictures? Velv will be pissed." Fox explained.

"She'll be mad if you don't take the pictures?" Ren asked.

"No, she'll be mad because of the pictures. One, because she's not here to do so. Also, because I'm blind. So she'll think I have no clue what I'm taking pictures of." Fox said, chuckling afterwards. Ren chuckled.

"Go ahead." Ren said. Fox smirked and pulls out his scroll. Ren walked over to another set of paintings. There were four paintings. They were of the seasons. Spring, Fall, Winter and Summer.

They also had labels underneath them.

知識 was under the spring painting. 創造 was under Winter. 選択 was under Fall, and 破壊 was under Summer.

"Knowledge, Creation, Choice and Destruction." Ren read. He then remembered that those were the names of the Relics. But why were they under these painting.

Lotus began sniffing the ground. He then scratches at the floor and walks off. Ren noticed this and followed behind.

Lotus lead him to a wall and began to scratch at it.

"Hey Fox." Ren called. Fox takes a picture of a vase with dragons on it before turning and walking to Ren.

"What's up?" Fox asked.

"Lotus found something. I think it's behind this wall." Ren said.

"How do we get through?" Fox asked.

"Look around for something." Ren said. Fox nods and began to look around.

Lotus sniffs at the ground again and began to look as well.

Ren began to search in the area he was just at. He looked at the paintings. There was something about the spring painting that was shouting at him.

That's when he saw it. The spring painting was slanted. It wasn't perfectly on the wall like the others.

Ren walks to it and fixes the painting. A click was heard. Looking back at the wall, he sees it open revealing a secret passageway. Fox and Lotus hear it and walk towards the now open wall.

"What'd you do?" Fox asked.

"I straighten the painting back there, I guess that's how you open this passageway." Ren answered.

"That was it? Do the people who designed this know how easy it is for that to be discovered by mistake?" Fox asked.

"This place is normally well guarded, so it makes sense, but we should still proceed with caution." Ren said.

"I'm right behind you." Fox said.

The three went down the path. Little did they know, a scorpion faunus and a large man following behind them. Those two didn't know of the chameleon faunus following behind them.

(())

Jaune woke up and stretched his arms and legs. As he awakened, he saw felt his head and realized the bandage was still on. He takes it off and gets out of his bed. Feeling sore, he goes to the bathroom to take a warm shower.

Upon entering the bathroom, he notices an empty bottle of samurai shampoo in the trash can, meaning Ren was in here recently.

"Heh, Ren, for someone who's not a morning person, he sure gets things done early." Jaune said to himself. He takes his armor off and proceeds to do the same with his hoodie, before a knock was on his door. His hoodie was already only on his arms by the time he heard the knocking. He places it on the sink and walks out of the bathroom. He then proceeds to open the door.

Weiss was on the other side.

"Hey Weiss. What's up?" Jaune asked. She had an envelope in her hand.

"This was at the foot of your door. It's got your name on it, so I think it's for you." Weiss said handing him the envelope.

"Really? Thanks." Jaune said taking it and opening it up. He takes out a folded piece of paper and read it. Not out loud though.

Jaune's face slowly went from neutral to slightly upset. He lets out a sigh, crumbles the paper up and throws it in the trash right beside the door, shocking Weiss.

"Wait, Jaune." She called as Jaune walked away from the door, prompting it to close. Weiss used her foot to stop the door. She sees Jaune walking into the bathroom and closing the door. She looks in the trash can, takes out the crumbled up piece of paper.

The first few words made her flinch.

 _Dear Jaune_

 _Or should I refer to you as what you will always be. A disappointment._

Those first few words made were too painful to read, but she kept doing so anyway. But she did so, outside of the room letting the door close behind her.

 _Yet another useless letter filled with useless information from a useless son. Funny, I find it amazing how with a legacy as great as your father's and grandfather's, you still haven't upheld their name. But, what would I expect from someone like you. I'm glad your sisters didn't became hunters too. One disappointment is enough._

 _Sincerely, Julia Arc._

 _P.S, I had so much faith in you when you started. Now I'm more disappointed than ever. If your father was here he'd be just as disappointed._

Weiss couldn't believe what she just read. This was Jaune's mother. No wonder Jaune looked heartbroken. She was gonna knock again to see if Jaune was alright, but a thud and shattering glass stopped that process. This made Weiss figure that Jaune needs some time to himself to calm down and/or realize his anger. And with that, she left but looked back at their door.

"You're not a disappointment Jaune. You've proved that to us." She said walking away.

(())

Jaune sat on the toilet, looking at the ground whilst gripping his head. Sadness, anger, heartbreak. All emotions he was feeling right now. His mother, disappointed in him. Calling him useless. And now his hand was bleeding and there was a broken mirror. Jaune watched as the blood from his hand dripped onto the floor. He releases his head and looked at his armor. He grits his teeth, and turns the shower on.

A few minutes later, Jaune walks out of the shower with his clothes and armor on. He then walks to the door and walks out.

(())

Ren, Fox and Lotus continued to walk down the path. It was very dark. But with Lotus's nose, Ren's perception and Fox's echolocation, they prevailed.

"This place is really dark." Ren said.

"Try being blind." Fox responded.

"I'm blind at the moment, does that count?" Ren said.

"Meh, close enough." Fox said. Ren sees a light towards the end of the path. Lotus sniffs the ground and then starts to growl.

"Pooch thinks something's down there." Fox said.

"I've got a bad feeling as well." Ren said grabbing his StormFlower. Fox does the same with his blades.

"Stay here, I'll scout ahead. You too Lotus." Ren said. Lotus barks in acknowledgement. Ren steps further into the light and finds himself in a large room. The room was so large it looked like the inside of a four story house with no upper floors.

Ren stepped further and stepped into the middle of the room and felt the need to look down. Upon looking down, he sees a glass like area with a heptagonal object with some kind of symbol on it inside.

"Is this, the-" Ren stopped talking upon feeling something off. Instinct told him to rolled to the side and he did exactly that.

He avoided a kunai behind thrown at him.

He rolled onto his feet. And turned around to see a masked hyena Faunus charging at him with tekko kagi.

She attempts to slice Ren, only for the Lotus ninja to deflect each of the slashes and kicking her away.

Hearing the slashes, Fox and Lotus run into the room to see a hyena Faunus with the bottom half of her face covered.

He then headed an 'Rrraww!' Come from a male. He turns around where he heard two feet plant firmly to the ground as if someone had jumped and landed.

Before he could figure out what that was, he was victim to a punch, obviously a hook, to his left side and a reverse heel kick to the same side of his face. He ducks under the Crescent kick that followed up.

Fox throws a downward elbow followed by a left straight punch. Both were blocked, but he felt the attacker stumble. So he moved in for another attack. As did his attacker.

Lotus watched as Ren and the unknown assailant went back and forward. That's when he smelled another animal. Growling, he runs towards the smell, and soon he saw a hyena running towards the fight.

Lotus ran over and pounced on said hyena. Knocking it off course.

(())

Inside of the dark path. Tyrian and Hazel looked into the room from a distance. They see the fight going on. Tyrian grits his teeth.

"No! That Lotus comes with me!" He shouted as he activated his wrist blades and ran towards the room.

"Wait Tyrian!" Hazel started, before realizing who useless talking to him would be. So he just ran after him.

(())

Ren kicks back his assailant causing her to slide back.

"Who are you?" Ren demanded.

"Talk later!" Kim-Ly answered. She throws another kunai at him. Ren rolls out of the way and hears the kunai get knocked away. Knowing that didn't come from him, he turns to see who did it. He sees Tyrian flip over his head and run towards Kim-Ly. Tyrian attacks, throwing very hard to dodge and block attacks. He then uses his tail to sweep her leg. He then grabs her leg and throws her into the wall.

Tyrian changes targets to Ren. He strikes with his tail, which Ren managed to dodge. He ten strikes with his wrist blades. Ren blocked most of them and attempts to kick him back. But his leg as grabbed. Ren was thrown into the wall on the opposite side.

Fox blocks a kick to his face, and hits Marc with a jumping knee. Knocking him to the ground. He then runs towards Ren, who had just recovered.

Tyrian's laugh was heard.

"Hey! Who are you?!" Marc asked as he got back up.

"Who I am only matters to one person. And that's you young Lotus." Tyrian said pointing to Ren.

"Me?" Ren asked in confusion. "I thought it was Ruby you were after."

"The queen has taken quite an interest in you. And I don't plan on disappointing her again." Tyrian said.

"Just come with us and no one has to get hurt." Hazel said.

"Kobura wants the Lotus with him. So, I'd advise that the two of you don't interfere." Kim-Ly said. Tyrian smirked.

[Cue- Epic Japanese Music- Samurai Warrior]

"That snake will remain in the grass then." Tyrian said. He moves fast. Rushing Ren, he twists to the right as he throws his weight into a slash at him with his left wrist blades. It is deflected by the StormFlower. Tyrian easily comes round to attack with his right blades. His attack is once again deflected and Tyrian steps back from Ren, his momentum carrying him.

Ren quickly turns around and throws the StormFlower. At Kim-Ly, who dodges it. It bounces off of the wall and Ren caught it as Tyrian dove at him. Tyrian recovers and ran at him along with Kim-Ly.

Fox heard footsteps running past him. Knowing who that was, he trips him.

Marc quickly front flips onto his feet and turns to Fox and runs at him. Fox runs back. Fox throws a punch, Marc throws a kick and the two of them clashed. They both slide back and charge back at at each other. Fox throws an axe kick in his direction. Marc dodges out of the way and ends up behind Fox. Marc throws a barrage of kicks in his direction. The first two hit him in his back, the next were blocked.

Marc performed a somersault kick, Fox blocked it with his blades and grabbed his foot. Trips him and throws him towards the wall.

Hazel ran towards him, grabs him by the torso, picks him up and slams him to the ground. Fox rolls onto his feet and faced his second attacker.

Fox spun his blades to face Hazel. He ran over to attack. Slashing at Hazel, his attacks were dodged. He aimed at his neck, but Hazel caught it. Marc hops onto Fox's blade, and side kicks Fox in the face. As Fox flew back, Marc front flipped to his feet and changed targets to Hazel.

Hazel dodges a roundhouse kick and a follow up reverse heel kick. Blocks another few kicks, and three punches. The last punch was caught, and Hazel brought his fist up and hits Marc in the back of his head, sending him face first into the ground. Fox jumps back into the fight.

(())

Ren jumps over Tyrian as he struck at Kim-Ly. Seeing Ren flip over him, he uses his Wrist Blades to keep Kim-Ly at bay and used his tail to strike Ren. Ren dodges. Tyrian sweeps Kim-Ly's legs and she flips over him. Landing on the opposite of Ren, leaving Ren in between them. She strikes at Ren, but Ren blocks it, pushes her back, and Roundhouse kicks her in the face. She spins back and stumbled. Ren turns to Tyrian and slashed at him. Tyrian dodges to the sides, spins around and shoots at him. Ren moves out of the way, causing him to shoot at Kim-Ly. Kim-Ly spun her Kusari-Fundo, blocking the bullets. She then launches it at Ren, wrapping it around his left wrist. Luckily, his new gauntlets kept them from hurting.

Tyrian flips into the air and brings down his wrist blades in an attempt to hit Ren. Seeing this coming, Ren moves the chain of the Kusari-Fundo in front of him, causing Tyrian to cut through that.

Shocked, Kim-Ly looks at her now broken chain, Giving Ren enough time to take the weighted end wrapped around his fist and throw it at her face.

Kim-Ly is hit in the face and stumbles back as she watched Ren and Tyrian exchange blows. She glares at Ren and attempts to use her semblance. However, her targets didn't show up. She groans and throws them anyway. Ren and Tyrian performed backflips in order to avoid them.

Ren and Fox were back to back. They look at each other, nod and switch.

(())

With a pair of White wings, Brock flew to the top of the Citadel. He looks down and smirked.

Wearing black neckerchief, a tan t-shirt, a pair of black cargo pants, black combat boots and a sack at his side, he reaches into his sack and brings it back out, revealing his fist wrapped in thick glass.

He then zooms down punching through the roof and everything else to reach the bottom.

(())

Ren clashed with Tyrian, both of them trying to push each other back.

"You've gotten stronger. You'd make a valuable ally." Tyrian said.

"Over my dead body." Ren said. He then hears something coming down fast. Tyrian heard it two. They both moved back and a winged man crashed through the ceiling and hit directly where they were standing. The glass surrounded his fist shattered and he quickly charges Ren. Pinning him by the neck against the wall.

"You better be a challenge." He said as he throws Ren to the ground. Fox tries to go help him, but Brock flapped his wings and a bunch of glass shards flew his way. A large shard hits him in the forehead as he shielded himself with his blades causing him to bleed from there.

He turns to Ren, who attacks him. Ren is easily subdued and grabbed by the neck. He is hoisted off his feet.

"Kobura needs to have a word with you, whether you like it or not." He said as he squeezed.

"A pity he asked for you alive, I'd enjoy piercing your pathetic-" Brock was interrupted by Ren shooting his face. Blinding him. He then got lashed in the back by an electric whip. He turns around to see Ilia with said whip in her hand.

"Ilia. Run!" Ren said. Ilia ignored him and got ready to fight. She lashes at Brock, but his wings and arms blocked them. She strikes again but he disappears. Ilia looks around but didn't see him. That's when Kim-Ly attacked.

Hearing her coming. Ilia defended herself against her. That's when Kim-Ly reverse heel kicked her. Which turned her around.

She turns directly into Brock, who had glass around his knuckles in the form of back of the hand claws, and stuck her in the left side of her torso.

Ilia looked in shock as he pulled the claw out.

"No!" Ren shouted. Ilia falls down, Fox rushes over and catches her. Brock brings up a sea of glass and sends it in Fox's direction. Fox used himself to cover Ilia. Using most of his aura to shield his back, he received cuts all over both his arms.

Ren runs over and throws a rage fuelled punch to the side of Brock's face. Sending him into the wall.

"Fox. Get Ilia out of here!" Ren ordered. He looked to see Kim-Ly and Marc running his way. Ren's black wings ripped through his tailcoat, and the third eye appeared on his forehead. But his scleras remained normal, and no dragon ink appeared.

"What about you!?" Fox said.

"I'll buy you some time!" Ren said. Ren the laser from his head in a horizontal line. Hitting Kim-Ly and Marc.

Brock recovers from the wall and throws a kick to Ren's torso. Ren back dashes away from it, and retaliates with a reverse heel kick. Brock catches it and forms a doorway that was seemingly made of glass. He trips Ren and spins him before throwing him into that doorway, revealing that it was a portal. He goes through the portal as well. The portal shatters and lands on the ground.

Tyrian and Hazel looked in shock as that happened.

Kim-Ly and Marc took their shock as a chance to escape and did so via smoke pellets.

(())

Neo walked through the forest with a slight glum expression on her face. She still had not gotten over what happened to Roman. She tried coping with her loss by leaving Cinder's faction and finding a place to get her mind off of what happened. But knowing that her partner in crime was gone, it was not easy to do.

She hears a loud crashing come from behind her. She turns and goes to investigates. Making sure to keep her umbrella close as a just in case.

(())

Ren was on his hands and knees with a collapsed tree behind him. He was dazed but not severely hurt. He looked back at the portal to see Brock flip through it and sent shards of glass in his direction. Ren quickly stands to his feet and evades said shards. Brock sends more shards in his direction. Ren backflips to avoid them, and then used his wings to fly backwards towards the trees. He then runs, using the trees to hide him.

Brock sniffs the air as he stopped sending the glass shards his way.

"You think you can hide from this nose kid?" Brock said. One of Ren's StormFlower was thrown at him. He moves out of the way, causing it to land in a tree. Ren drops from the sky, using his wings to pick up speed, and attempts to land on him. Moving out of the way, Brock rolls to avoid the concussive force.

Brock attacked Ren as he turned around, Ren was met with a fist to his face, followed by being grabbed by the neck and hoisted off of his feet.

(())

Nora woke up stretching. As she woke up, she looked at Ren's bed, but saw that he wasn't there. She got up and took her scroll out. She dials Ren's number.

(())

Ren's scroll started to vibrate. Brock smirked and reached into Ren's pocket and pulled it out.

He looks at the contact.

"Nora Valkyrie? Looks like your little girlfriend is concerned for you. I bet you'd like to see her again. How about I take you to her?"

"You stay away from my friends you son of a bitch." Ren said.

"I see you've met my mother. You know, I'll let you see her again. You'll be watching me as I take her flesh and peel it off one by **One!** " Brock said sadistically as he crushed Ren's scroll. The Dragon ink started to appear on his face as he became enraged. A laser fired from his forehead and hits Brock, prompting him to let go.

Blinded, Brock steps back. He looks at Ren who was on his knees, gritting as his the ink started to appear on his left side. Brock looked around, this is when he saw a girl with pink and brown hair staring at him. She was probably there when they started fighting.

(())

That man looked directly at Neo as she watched what had just happened. The white winged man rushed her, not giving her enough time to react.

He grabbed her and lifted her off her feet.

"Well well. Look what we have here. A little spy. Looks like it's my lucky day." He said as he spawned some black gases from your arm.

"There's no guarantee you'll live from this. But that's a sacrifice that I am willing to make." He said bringing his hand back. Neo braced herself.

Before Brock could do what he was about to do, Ren's other StormFlower pierced through his hand. Which brought pain, and deactivated the black gases.

"What the-" He said looking back at Ren. Ren's scleras were pitch black. His Yami no Tenshi subconscious was in control now.

Brock growls and throws the StormFlower to the ground.

"You're seriously getting on my nerves kid." Brock said releasing Neo and turning to Ren.

[Cue- Tekken 6- Fallen Colony]

"Be a challenge, will ya? I'd appre-" Before he could finish, Ren ran over and uppercuts him, and then punches downward. Ren then hits him with a powerful three punch combo, quickly follows with a front kick and then grabs him and throws him head first into the ground.

Brock quickly uses his wings to recover. As he stood to his feet he laughed.

"Now _This_ is what I call a fight!" He said as Ren shot a laser from his head. Brock flew upwards to avoid it. Ren rubs his head in pain. Brock comes down with glass surrounding his hands and lands it on Ren's back. The glass spirals around his fist and cuts into Ren. Luckily, his aura prevented it from going through his skin too far. Unluckily, it still pierced his skin.

Brock throws Ren into the air and hits him in the torso twice. The glass piercing his stomach each strike. Then he slams him to the ground. Ren recovers and looks at him whilst holding his pained stomach.

Brock spiraled his hands around and formed what looked up like a ball of Lightning. He then punches it at him. Ren used his left wing to deflected it. Brock does the same with his foot, but Ren ducked underneath it. He tackles Brock and punched him whilst pinning him down. Each punch leaving a crater in the ground. Ren then picks him up, throws him into the air, flies up and then punches him towards the ground. Brock flies to the ground with lots of speed and Ren flew after him.

Brock hits the ground and bounced back up to his feet. He hears Ren come after him. Brock brings up a glass wall, Ren's flying foot made contact with it, but instead of breaking it, it pushed him back, then shattered.

"Ha, try again." He taunted. He snaps his fingers and lightning struck next to him. When the lightning disappeared, a Kumiho (Korean nine tailed Fox) made of glass appeared, and it was 5' 7" on all fours. It ran to Ren and began its assault. It cuts Ren in the torso with its front claw and ended up behind him. Ren turns around only to be victim to more slashes and cuts from the Kumiho. The final move was when the Kumiho resembled that of a boarbatusk's spin dash, cutting Ren up and down, pushing him back. Ren was drenched in his own blood, but was far from out of the fight and stood up in less than a second. The Kumiho lunged at him, only to be grabbed by the neck by Ren and thrown at his summoner. Upon hitting Brock, the kumiho shatters against him.

"What?! Impo-" Brock was interrupted by a punch to his nose, stunning him. Ren then grabbed him by neck and slams him face first into the ground. Ren used his wings to fly whilst dragging Brock's face against the ground before flying into the air.

Ren flies to an open meadow and slams Brock to the ground, who still flips to his feet. As Brock stood up, he saw a silver orb the size of a human head with black aura illuminating from it and surrounding it.

Ren had no idea what that was, but his subconscious did and since it was in control, he went for it. As did Brock.

The two of them clash. Brock punches Ren back, flies up and double stomps onto the orb breaking it. The black aura started to surround him. Ren flies into the air and spins down to the ground and spun back up towards Brock's torso. His spinning caused some damage, and it also caused the aura to transfer from Brock to him as he appeared on the other side.

"What!? Are you kidding me?" Brock asked in shock. Ren slammed his fist to the ground and the aura exited his fists and traveled towards Brock in a jumping manner. When the aura reached him, he was frozen as the aura wrapped around him and evaporated, turning him into glass. Ren rushed over, grabbed him by the forehead, and crushed his head completely. The headless glass statue returned to normal flopped over.

Ren turned around and began to walk away. However, his consciousness was regained, and he began to limp. He looked down to see that he was covered in his own blood. He only makes it twenty five feet before he passed out. Once he was out, his body started healing the cuts. But it was one cut at a time.

Two men wearing red and black clothing walked to Ren's unconscious body. One of them, a lightly tanned male with brown hair and a red headband going over his right eye with a rifle in his hand looked behind him to see Raven.

"This one's still breathing." He said. Raven walks closer and saw Ren covered in his own blood. He face went into one of near shock.

"Oh boy, Aiel is gonna have a field day with this one." Raven said. 

"Aiel? The medic?" The first one asked.

"We're helping him?" The other asked.

"I owe him one. Quickly, before he loses more blood." Raven said. The two bandits make a stretcher and place Ren on it. They walked off with him on it. Raven looked back to see Brock's dead body. She saw the badger ink disappear from his body. She continued walking with her two tribe members. What she didn't see was black aura emerge from Brock's body and made its way to Ren. Upon reaching Ren, it lands on him and disappears.

(())

Nora types in Ren's scroll again in a blind panic. The first time she called, it rang a few times and went to voicemail, but the next few times, Ren's scroll went straight to voicemail.

Ruby woke up and stretched. She looked at Nora to see her with a panicked look on her face.

"Nora, is everything alright?" Ruby asked.

"Ren's not answering his scroll and it keeps going straight to voicemail and he's also not here and I'm very very _very_ worried that something might have happened to him and-"

"Whoa, Nora. Calm down. What happened?" Ruby asked.

"Ren's scroll isn't on. It keeps going straight to voicemail." Nora said.

"Well, his scroll could just be off." Ruby said.

"Ruby. Ren _never_ turns his scroll off. _Never._ " Nora said. Ruby thought about it. She did have a point. Not at any point has Ren's scroll ever been off. Even late at night.

"Well you have a point there." Ruby said. A knock happened on the door. Ruby goes over and opened it and saw Blake and Yang at the door.

"I need to talk to Ren." They both said. The two of them then looked at one another.

"He's not here." Ruby said. Blake and Yang grimaced.

"Well where is he?" They asked at the same time again. The looked at each other, glaring this time.

"Why do you need to see him?" Again at the same time.

"That's between the two of us."

"Stop that!" They said, now annoyed that they've been saying the same thing at the same time.

"Um… Is this a bad time?" Oscar's voice asked. Weiss was behind him as she was the first to hear the news from him.

"No, do you need something?" Ruby asked.

"I have to inform you that the Relic has been stolen."

"What?!" Nora and Ruby exclaimed.

"When I went to receive it, it wasn't there." Oscar said.

"Wait a minute. Does Lionheart know about the Yummy no tent she?" Nora asked. Confused looks occurred throughout the room.

" _I think she meant Yami no Tenshi_." Ozpin said.

"Do you mean Yami no Tenshi?" Oscar asked.

"Yes yes, that. Does Lionheart know about that?" Nora asked.

"Yes he does." Oscar said.

"What does that have to-"

"Lionheart probably sent Ren to get it back. He know he possessed that power." Nora said. Everyone took a minute to process that and found out that it made sense.

"That actually makes sense." Yang said.

"Why isn't he back yet? And why hasn't Lionheart told us?" Ruby asked. Everyone was silent. Soon, Ruby's scroll vibrate.

It was from Coco.

'Hey, have you guys seen Fox?'

'No, afraid not.'

'He's been gone since this morning. We're a little worried.'

'Ren's gone too.'

'Check out these pictures of Velvet.' Coco's text said. Ruby received three pictures. One was of Velvet in Fox's jacket, which had the sleeves seemingly ripped off, and a black fox yin yang symbol.

The second one was of her turning to look at who took the picture, and the last one was of her running to coco. Ruby screenshots them and looked at her team.

"Guys, Fox is gone too." Ruby said.

(())

Cinder walks into the room with Salem. Who had just finished talking to Lionheart.

"You wanted to see me?" Cinder asked.

"Yes. I have located the spring maiden. Thanks to a little birdy who told Lionheart that the spring maiden is with Raven's tribe. Cinder. Take your team and convince Raven Branwen that the survival of her people depends on her cooperation Once you have Spring under control, escort her to the Relic and contact Hazel. The White Fang was promised the destruction of Haven, and they'll have it once we have what we need." Salem said. Cinder's face clearly showed one of unhappiness.

"Is there something wrong?" Salem asked.

"I don't understand. Working with bandits? Keeping Ruby alive? What's the point? We're strong enough to take what we want by force!" Cinder asked.

"Never underestimate the usefulness of others. Take Leonardo; he was one of Ozpin's most trusted, and yet now…" Salem started. Cinder looked away for a moment. "You will have the power I promised you, when the time is right. But remember that it comes with a cost. If Ruby Rose has learned to harness her gift, then you must take care to protect yours. There's only so much I can do to aid you." Salem finished. A seer appears next to Salem and a smoke-like substance contained in the head of the Seer Grimm shifts to form an image of Tyrian.

"My grace. We have… We have a problem." Tyrian said in a help me manner.

"Explain. Now." She said.

"Another Yami no Tenshi possessor interfered. And he disappeared." Tyrian said. Salem looked away and thought. Cinder was exiting the room.

"Cinder." She called. Cinder turned back to look at her. "Before you leave, I need to inform you about the Yami no Tenshi."

(())

 **Oh, my fucking GOD THOSE FIGHT SCENES HURT TO TYPE! Seriously, the fight scenes and the transitions make this a pain to type.**

 **Anyways, guess who's winning the Harem votes?**

 **Hint: It's Raven.**

 **Top 4 so far:**

 **Raven- 8**

 **Blake- 7**

 **Yang- 6**

 **Ilia- 5**

 **The 4 runner ups are:**

 **Ruby- 4**

 **Neo and Nora- tied for 3**

 **Coco- 2**

 **And Arslan- 1**

 **I also realized that I made a mistake in the last chapter. The second voting option is actually sort of contest. The name for Ren's new gauntlets. Who can make the best name?**

 **My personal three names are the Devil's Rose, the Archangel's Eclipse, and Falling Sky. If you have no better name, vote on these.**

 **And finally, sadly only one person voted for Fox's semblance. The three options are Concussive Force, Defense Reduction, and Via Kitsune, and Via Kitsune got the one vote. (Via Kitsune is like Sun's semblance replaced with a nine tailed fox, or a Kitsune)**

 **Make Predictions for the next chapter. You might be surprised when the next chapter pops ups.**

 **And with that, I'm out.**


	15. Snake in the Grass

Chapter 14: Snake in the Grass

 **A/N: This was hard to write, please review**

Ren slowly began to open his eyes. He found himself in an unfamiliar place. He found himself in a tent. He soon realized what went down earlier and tried to get up. However, upon doing so, his sides began to hurt.

He grunts in pain and grips his side.

He then hears footsteps. He looks at where they came from and saw Raven open the tent.

"Ren! Don't move." Raven said running into the tent. She runs to his side.

"Wha- Raven where am-" Ren tried to ask. Raven shushed him. Placing an index finger on his lips.

"Kid, listen. I'll answer all the questions you have. But now I need you to relax." She said. Ren looked at her with a confused look. He looked at himself and saw he had bandages wrapped around his torso.

"Where am I?" Ren asked.

"Not far from the Mistral kingdom." Raven answered. She pulls out some kind of small medicine bottle.

"Here, drink this." Raven said. Ren nods and does what he was told. The liquid caused him to cough a little. Raven put her hand on his chest.

"Easy kid, Easy." She said. Ren stopped cough and looked at Raven.

"What happened?" Ren asked.

"You got ambushed by the Black Claw, Salem's group and a Yami no Tenshi possessor. That snake Lionheart sent you directly into a trap." Raven said with haste in her voice.

"A trap?" Ren asked.

"Salem's allies were waiting for you. Lionheart almost got you killed. Then there was that other Yami no Tenshi possessor. He's the reason you're in this condition." Raven explained. Ren did remember that. He blacked out afterwards though.

"Is he still out there?" Ren asked.

"No, you killed him." Hearing those words made Ren flinch a little.

"I… I did?" He asked. Hoping he heard that wrong.

"Afraid so, but you weren't to blame. You lost control." Raven said. Ren looked away for a brief moment.

"How could I have lost control? Why did I let my anger get the best of me?" Ren asked himself.

"It wasn't your anger. It was the Yami no Tenshi. It seized control of your mind for the brief moment." Raven explained.

"That doesn't excuse the fact that I just killed someone."

"It was either him or you. Your subconscious decided it wasn't gonna be you." Raven said. Ren still looked at the wall of the tent.

"Are Fox and Ilia okay?" Ren asked.

"Yes. They managed to escape while everyone else was distracted." Raven replied. Her hand was still on Ren's chest. She felt his heartbeat accelerate.

"How long have I been here?" Ren asked.

"Around 5 hours." Raven answered. Ren almost went into panic breathing.

"My team-"

"is definitely worried. They'll be glad you're okay. But you need to rest." Raven said. Ren tried to get up, but Raven forced him back down.

"What did I just say?"

"I can't just sit here, I have to tell the others." Ren grunted. He attempts again, but Raven forces him back down.

"You are in no condition to move."

"I don't care." Ren said. He tries to get up again. Raven places both hands on his shoulders and forced him back down.

"I get you want to get back to your team, but you need to rest. You've taken too much damage." Raven said. Ren attempts to force himself back up. But his sore body gave up in terms of strength.

"Stay down!" Raven said sternly. Ren grits his teeth and stayed down. Raven let out a sigh and realised his shoulders.

"You've suffered lots of damage to your torso and legs. If you try to run, you will not get far, the grimm will get you, you will die. Is that clear?" Raven asked. Ren groans.

"Yes."

"Look kid. I know you want to go and tell your team. But you need to take a break. You've been fighting nonstop for two days with little to no rest. And I'm to blame for that. Please. For the sake of your life, stay put and get some rest. Can you do that?" Raven asked.

"Fine." Ren said. Raven stood up and walked towards the tent exit. She stops and looks back at Ren.

"I'm gonna be here with some new clothes for you. Your old clothes were drenched in blood and we had to throw them away." Raven said. Ren went wide eyed for a moment before looking at his lower half, which was covered up with a blanket. He lifts it up, and saw that he was missing all his clothes, except for his new gauntlets. He puts the blanket back down.

"I'm…. I'm sorry this happened to you Ren." She said walking out of the tent. Ren looked at the sides of the tent as he laid back down. Ren sighed.

(())

Raven exits the tent and looks to the left, where one of her tribe members.

"Make sure he does not leave." Raven said.

"Understood." He said. Raven began to walk off. As she did, she looked back at the tent, sighed, and proceeded to walk.

(())

Ruby, Nora and Blake paced back and forward as Oscar, Weiss, and Yang watched them.

"This is bad, this is very bad!" Nora said.

"The relic is missing, Ren's gone, CFVY's missing a teammate!" Ruby said.

"What if the White Fang got to him? If Adam finds out about the Yami no Tenshi, He'll torture Ren!"

"We have to find him!" All three said.

"I know, we will." Weiss said.

"But, where do we start looking?" Oscar asked.

"Anywhere! And where's Jaune? He's been gone since we woke up!" Nora asked.

"Yea, where is Vomit boy?" Yang asked. There was a knocking on the door. Blake, being the closest to the door, walked over and opened the door. Immediately upon opening it, she is moved out of the way by Fox, who was carrying a bleeding Ilia. Ilia's skin was red, and her hair and her freckles were black.

"Quickly, get me some medical supplies." Fox started.

"Whoa, wait! Fox who is that?" Yang asked.

"Ilia!" Blake said in shock.

"Get some medical supplies!" Fox shouted. Yang stands up and clears off a table as Weiss ran off to grab some medical supplies.

Fox had open cuts going across his arms and a bleeding forehead.

"What happened? What's going on?" Oscar asked.

"I'll explain later. Quickly, put pressure on the wound." Fox said gesturing to the wound he was holding.

"W-what? I can't do that I-" Oscar started.

"Do it!" Fox ordered. Frightened, Oscar does what he's told, applying pressure to Ilia's wound.

Weiss comes back into the room with a medical box. She places it on the floor.

"What happened?" Weiss asked.

"We got attacked." Fox said as he applied pressure to the wound on his head.

"By who? The White Fang?" Yang asked.

"Why is she here?" Blake asked, more out of concerned than out of coldness.

"I don't know who they were, but they weren't White Fang. And she tried to help us." Fox stated. "Get me some pain killers."

"She helped you?" Blake asked. Shocked.

"Hey! Can we stop with the questions already and get her some help?!" Fox asked. Weiss hands him the painkillers. He takes out a few and holds them to Ilia. Too weak to move her arms, Fox placed them into her mouth and she swallows.

There was a knock on the door.

"What's all the commotion in there?" Velvet's asked. Ruby opens the door for her. Velvet walks in only to see Fox with blood trickling down his head.

She gasps.

"Fox! what happened to you?!" She asked. That's when she noticed Ilia on the table.

"Who is she?! What's going on?!" Velvet asked, worried beyond everything.

"Velv, I promise I'll explain everything, but I've got to help Ilia." Fox said less aggressive. He starts wrapping her wounded area with bandages. Ilia's eyes began to close.

"Hey. Hey! Hey! You gotta stay awake. Okay? Don't go to sleep whatever you do." Fox said. Ilia kept her eyes open, but her vision became blurry.

"Fox, tell us what happened." Ruby said.

"We went to see where the relic has been but, we were ambushed upon getting there." Fox stated.

"Who's we?" Blake asked.

"R-ren." Ilia said.

"Ren was with you!?" Nora said. She soon grabbed Fox by the collar of his jacket.

"Where is he?!" She asked.

"Hey, Calm down, I don't know." Fox said.

"What do you mean you don't know, you were with him?" Yang butted in.

"I mean it like that. I don't know where he is." Fox said.

"There was another Yami no Tenshi that attacked us. He went into that form to fight him, and disappeared after that." Ilia said. She proceeds sit up, ignoring the pain.

"What do you mean he disappeared? " Blake asked.

"Ren went berserk. And went to fight whoever that was. He said he'd buy us some time. We had no clue what happened after that." Ilia said

"We barely walked out with our lives." Fox said. Blake looked at Ilia with a confused expression.

"Ilia. How do you know Ren?" She asked.

Ilia went silent and spoke up.

"He helped me around two years ago. He threw the authorities off of my trail." Ilia said. Blake then looked back at her conversation with Ilia two years ago.

"Wait, Ren was the one you told me about?" Blake asked.

"Yes." Ilia said.

"We've got to tell Lionheart what happened." Velvet said.

"And Uncle Qrow." Ruby said.

"What about Jaune? He needs to know about this." Weiss said.

"Where is he?" Nora asked.

"I have no clue." Weiss said.

"We need to find him." Ruby said.

"I can look for him, I saw him earlier." Velvet said.

"Where'd he go?" Fox asked.

"He looked like he was walking to the training hall. But I never asked him." Velvet said.

"We'll look for him there." Fox said.

"We'll tell Uncle Qrow." Ruby said gesturing to Nora.

"Weiss, we need to tell Lionheart about what happened." Yang said.

"I'll stay here with Ilia. We need to have a serious talk." Blake said. Ilia flinched a little as her skin changed color back to normal.

"W-what about me?" Oscar asked.

"Stay with Blake. We might need your help later."

"Okay." Oscar said. They all left the rooms and ran out.

Blake looks at Ilia.

"I need you to tell me about the White Fang. Mistral's White Fang." Blake said. Ilia sighed and looked at Blake.

"Sienna has been killed by Adam." Ilia started.

(())

Ren kept looking at the ceiling, since it was the only place that he could look without risking the blanket falling off.

Soon enough, he looks to see Raven come back into the tent with some folded clothes.

"Here. Put these on." Raven said tossing him the clothes. They clothes were of red and black variety.

"Sorry, they're not your normal clothes. But this was all I had." Raven said. The first thing Ren puts on were the underwear and pants. This surprised Raven as he did so without removing the blanket.

The clothing for his upper body was a dark red and black hoodie jacket with a broken zipper. He puts it on. His chest and bandaged torso remained exposed.

"The zipper's broken." Ren pointed out.

"It'll be fine." Raven replied. Ren moved the blanket from over him. He soon sees that he's barefoot.

Before he could say anything, a pair of black sneakers similar to Jaune's landed next to him. He put them on without a second thought.

Now fully clothed, Ren sits up and looks at Raven.

"You still need to rest." Raven said. The soreness throughout his body agreed with her.

"I know." Ren said.

"But… before that happens. I've got someone here to see you." Raven said. Raven opens the tent and Lotus limps into the tent and towards Ren. Lotus had bandages wrapped around his front left leg.

"Hey Lotus." Ren said. He began petting him as Lotus licked him. Dusk appears at the opening of the tent.

"Miss Raven. We have a problem." Dusk said.

"What is it?" Raven asked looking back at him.

"The some of Salem's associates are here." Dusk said. Raven went wide eyed.

"Oh no. They're either here for Spring, or you." Raven said.

"What?" Ren asked.

"Kid, you need to stay hidden. That's very important." Raven said she walks out with Dusk following her.

"Wait, I can't- Ugh!" Ren said slowly becoming irritated. He attempts to stand up, only for the soreness of his legs to bring him down. He looked around the tent and tried to find something to help him stand. His eyes made contact with a steel bo staff. He looks at Lotus.

"Lotus, get that for me." He said. Lotus complyed and ran over and grabbed the staff.

Lotus brings the staff to Ren, and Ren pet him as he took it. Ren used the staff to support himself as he stood up. As he stood up, he decided to talk to his counterpart.

"Hey. Can you hear me?" Ren asked.

"Is my assistance required?" Other Ren asked.

"Do you think you can Enhance my recovery?" Ren asked.

"You've been granted an additional base form ability for the defeat of an Osoli rank. Are you certain that you want-"

"Yes!" Ren exclaimed. Unintentionally getting the attention of the bandit assigned to keep him in there.

"Hey! What's going on in there?"

"Very well. Enhanced Recovery granted. You shall be fully recovered in the next twenty minutes." Other Ren informed. That was gonna be a long time in Ren's case.

The bandit walks into the tent.

"What's going on in here?" He asked.

"I… I need to leave." Ren said.

"Sorry, that's not happening." The bandit said.

"I have to go, now!" Ren said.

"Not happening. I'm under strict orders not to let you leave. You're staying he-." He was interrupted by a blunt hit to the back of the head. Knocking him out. The bandit falls to the ground and Ren sees a short girl with pink hair on the right side and dark brown hair on the left. Her eyes were also mixed matched.

This was the girl he helped in the forest before he past out.

"What are you doing?" Ren asked. The girl started to perform sign language.

"(Returning the favor.)" She sighed. She takes his StormFlower off her back and gives them to him.

Ren reaches for them, but had a hard time moving.

The girl placed them into his hoodie jacket pockets for him.

"I never got your name." Ren said.

"(It's Neopolitain, but call me Neo for short.)" She signed.

"Okay Neo, I heard one of them say that Salem's associates are here." Ren said.

"(Cinder.)" She sighed.

"I thinks it's more than just Cinder." Ren said. "Raven said they're either here for me, or they're here for spring."

"(For you? Is it because of those wings you had in the forest?)" Neo asked.

"It's a little more than just wings. We got to move him, though." Ren said. Neo looked for a second and got an idea. She drags him towards the middle of the tent, flips him onto his back and places Ren's blanket over his foot.

"Is that supposed to make him look like be slipped?" Ren asked. Neo grimaced.

"(You got a better idea?)"

Ren almost immediately looked at the steel Bo staff he was using to support his weight. Neo looked for a minute before gesturing to it.

"I'm kinda using this for a crutch." Ren said. Neo walks over, and places herself under Ren's arm to keep him up, and used her foot to put the bo staff under the bandit's feet.

"That looks a little better." Ren said. Neo helped him walk out of the tent. The first thing they saw were a fair number of bandits towards the entrance of the camp.

"We need to check that out." Ren said. Looking at Neo, he sees that she changed her appearance. She had blonde hair and pale grey eyes. Her appearance also resembled that of the bandits.

"Did you just-"

"(My semblance. I create illusions for myself so I can remain in disguise.)" She sighed.

"That makes sense. Let's go over there." Ren said. Neo walks towards where the bandits were.

(())

"Miss Branwen. Let's not make this any harder than this has to be." Cinder said. She, Mercury and Emerald stood around ten feet from the entrance. Raven was in front of the group of bandits.

"What do you want?" Raven asked.

"The spring maiden." Cinder said.

"That's not happening." Raven said. Ren managed to make it to the conversation, with Neo helping him.

"Miss Branwen. I'm afraid I wasn't asking." Cinder said. She lifted her right hand and summoned a fireball. "For the safety of your tribe, I will advise that you hand her over."

Ren could tell this wasn't gonna end well, he had to think of something quick. Ren looked at Neo, and then at the entrance where Cinder, Mercury, and Emerald stood. Then he looked at Neo. That's when he got an idea.

"Neo? You don't associate yourself with them anymore, right?" Ren asked. Neo shook her head.

"Think you could pretend you do for a moment?" Ren asked. Neo looked at him confused for a minute.

"(Why would you ask that?)" She sighed.

"I've got an idea." Ren said. Neo smirked.

(())

"You must think I'm foolish. The survival of my people lies in my hands. Handing the spring maiden to you will lead to their destruction. I'm gonna make sure that doesn't happen." Raven said placing a hand on her sword handle. Dusk and Dawn, who were standing next to her, activated blades attached to their arms. The other bandits got ready for a fight as well.

"Wait!" Ren's voice said. Raven and the other bandits looked his direction and saw Ren with a blade to his neck. To his left was his captor, Neo. Who had undisguised herself.

"Ren!" Raven called out of concern. Neo pressed the blade harder against his neck. Ren's neck started to bleed. Raven was gonna pull out her weapon, but upon doing so, she saw Neo's grip tighten. Raven's grip on her handle loosened.

"(Drop your weapons.)" Neo demanded in sign language. The bandits looked at each other then at Raven.

"(I won't ask again.)" Neo said. Raven took her hand off of her handle.

"Drop Em." Raven said. She drops her scabbard onto the ground. The bandits looked at her and did the same thing. Except Dusk and Dawn, who deactivated their blades.

Neo walked Ren towards the entrance where Cinder was.

"Neopolitan? I thought she left us." Emerald said.

"Old habits die hard I guess." Mercury said. Neo reached Cinder and pushed Ren towards her. Ren stumbles and hits the ground. He tries to get up, but Neo places her foot on his back.

"What is this?" Cinder asked.

"(This boy is a possessor of a great power. A power that is as strong as the Seasonal Maidens power. Maybe even more.)" Neo said in sign language. Cinder had a smirk appear on her face.

She kneels down and picks Ren's face up to look at her.

"Is that so? And what power is it that he possesses?" Cinder asked as Ren glared at her.

"(Angel of Darkness.)" Neo said. Cinder looked at her then back at him.

"So you're the one who Salem wanted." Cinder said.

"Cinder, who is this?" Mercury asked.

"Someone more valuable than Spring. He'll be coming with us." Cinder said.

"Over my dead-" Ren was silenced by a strike to his sore side with the blunt end of Neo's umbrella. Raven was seconds away from running towards them, but one glare from Cinder stopped her.

"Why?" Emerald asked.

"I'll let Salem explain." Cinder said. Neo got off of Ren's back and Mercury picks him up by one arm and Emerald picks him up by the other and walked him off. Neo joined them, but as she did, she put one hand behind her back.

"(Follow us.)" She said. Raven only barely caught that. She picks up her sword scabbard and quickly makes a portal. She walks through it, leaving all but those who understood sign language confused.

(())

Weiss and Yang reached Lionheart's office. Weiss knocked on his door loudly. The door opened a few seconds later, Lionheart was on the other side.

"Professor Lionheart. We have a problem." Weiss said.

"Oh, and what seems to be the issue?" Lionheart said.

"Our friend, Ren has been missing for hours now." Yang said.

"Not just him. Fox is also gone. Oscar said that there's a chance that you might have sent him to retrieve the missing Relic. Is that true?" Weiss asked.

"Yes, it is. However, I'm pretty busy at the moment. Return in a few minutes." Lionheart requested.

"But sir-"

"I have a bigger problem at the moment, once I deal with that I will tend to your problem." Lionheart said. He closed the door before Weiss could say anything else. He looks behind him as the door was closed. A seer grimm was in the room with him. The seer had Salem's image in it.

"Looks like you've struck up some concern."

"It seems." Lionheart said.

"Now what is this about Ozpin's return?" Salem asked.

(())

Ironwood's ship flew past some kind of lake. Winter was in the back of the room with Penny. Penny took notice of the floating landmasses in the bright blue, partly cloudy sky, with what appears to be black crystals jutting out from the bottom of the rock formations. Curious, she decides to head into the pilot's cabin. The doors open.

"Mr Ironwood. Where are we?" Penny asked.

"Not a good place. Passing by some of Lake Matsu's floating islands. The gravity Dust that forms in these things is giving us a little turbulence. Nothing I can't handle, but the islands sometimes hide some nasty Grimm." Ironwood said. He then looks back at Penny, who had an innocent look on her face.

"You wanna sit in the co-pilot seat?" He asked.

"Can I?" Penny asked walking over to the co-pilot seat. As she sat down, she looked at the controls. She looked at the radio and turned it on. It started picking up nearby transmissions.

"Mayday, mayday! We are a small passenger flight, and our Huntress is down! We aren't equipped to deal with this!" A panicked female voice said. "The Grimm hit us 400 klicks north of the southern shoreline!"

"Isn't this close to the shoreline?" Penny asked.

"What's going on in there?" Winter asked as she opened the cockpit door.

As she walked in, Penny noticed an airship quickly heading towards them, on fire, and leaving a giant trail of smoke behind it.

"Look out!" Penny said. Ironwood looked to see the airship comes barreling from their right, narrowly hitting their cargo ship and forcing the pilot to pull upward to avoid it. The doomed craft, bearing a white symbol for Mistral on its sail, proceeds to collide into one of the floating islands.

"Percy! We lost Percy! Help!" The mistral pilot panicked.

Another Mistralian airship, pursued by a swarm of wasp-like Grimm, is suddenly hooked from multiple directions by their extendable stingers, which leaves them trapped and unable to move.

The three could only watch as this happened. The next thing that happened was that the ship spiraled towards another floating island. The pilot's last words were, 'Abandon Ship.'The three looked at wasp-like grimm look at them.

"Why did they have to be Lancers?" Ironwood said as he gripped the steering wheel.

(())

 **Well, this wasn't difficult at all to make. (Sarcastic) I was typing this at the same time I was typing the previous chapter, which is why it was earlier than most. I had to scrap some idea's however because it felt rushed. I want to get into the humor and harem of things before they get super serious.**

 **Speaking of Harem, guess who's in the lead.**

 **Raven Branwen- 12**

 **Her three runner ups are:**

 **Blake- 8**

 **Yang and Ilia- 7**

 **Ruby And Neo- 4**

 **The runner ups behind them are:**

 **Coco- 3**

 **Arslan- 2**

 **Everyone else- 0**

 **Like I said, There are thirteen of them, and I will make sure all of them have their share of Ren.**

 **Things will get serious, but not so soon.**

 **I was also playing a lot of tekken 4, so if you haven't figured it out yet, Ren's new outfit is a reference to Jin Kazama's player 1 outfit. Be sure to tell me what you think of it, and if he should keep it.**


	16. Bringer of war ( Fixed, please review)

Chapter 15: Bringer of War

Ironwood continued to make multiple evasive maneuvers low to the water and then around the floating islands while being pursued by the Lancer swarm. The Lancers nonetheless gain on the ship and begin to shoot their stingers at it, scraping the sides of the ship.

"Damn it. These Lancers aren't letting up." Ironwood gritted. Penny looked at the stingers and then at Ironwood.

"I can fight them sir." She said.

"What? Penny that isn't a good idea." Winter intervened.

"I can. Father has made improvements to me. I can do it." She said. Ironwood looked at her and sighed.

"You sure you can?" Ironwood asked. The green portions of Penny's clothes and her eyes turned blue.

"I'm combat ready." She said.

"Sir, what are you doing?" Winter asked.

"Professor Polendina wanted to run some tests, now's a good a time as any to do them. Just be careful, okay Penny?"

"Yes sir." She said. Ironwood pressed a button to open the cargo doors. Winter held onto something so not to fly out. Penny walked towards the opening. Her backpack opens and her swords come out. Two wing thrusters also come out. She then flies out of the ship.

(())

Three males and three females were inside of a temple like area, sitting at a long purple, crystal table. Six of them sat at the table with seven chairs.

The first male was a light brown skinned male with pure green eyes and blonde hair dyed silver at the tips. He wore an outfit that looked like a male version of Yang's old outfit if she preferred a black and green version of her outfit. He also had hawk talon ink on his neck. This one's name was Astor.

The second male was a pale skinned male with a black mid-section ponytail and a goatee. His eyes were closed so his eye color was unknown. He wore white and black samurai armor, resembling that of a white tiger. He had his arms crossed as he seemingly slept at the table. His name was Sabre Hu

The last male had messy dark blue hair, a purple eye and a red eye, and lightly tanned skin. He wore black cargo pants with a dark brown belt, black shoes, a white bandana on his left arm, and a brown leather vest over a tan dress shirt with the right sleeve cut off. For armor, he wears a metal spaulder, leather vambrace, and a brown fingerless glove, all on his right arm. On his arms, he had the tribal Dragon ink. This one had the name Hiryur Khuzayama

The females sat across from them. The first one was had pale white skin with short platinum blond hair. She wore an orange robe with only one wide, loose fitting sleeve over a black tube top. She also has black pants and shoes and a blue sash embroidered with a white "endless knot" on it. And her eyes were bright green. On her exposed shoulder, there was the badger ink. Her name was Brookley Morana.

The second female had lightly-tanned skin, yellow eyes, and black hair that was at least, butt length. She wore a high-necked, tight-fitting yellow shirt, along with a long, dark blue coat. She also wore a leather bandolier with a shoulderpad on the right, which also appears to hold her weapon, which was a dagger. She also wears black pants and dark gray boots.

Unlike the others, her ink was hidden. But she's gone to the mark of the falcon on her back. Her name was Aya Xantha.

The last female had pale skin and light blue eyes. Her hair was bright orange and she had a deep cut going over her eye. She wore a beige leather, sleeveless jacket with light-beige details; brown gloves, a sarashi tied around her chest and another around her hips, and a pauldron on her left shoulder. She also wears a belt around her waist, which has multiple brown pouches attached to it. Her eyes were a cold blue color.

On her arms were the panther inks.

Her name was Mela Eden.

These were the Yami no Tenshi lieutenants.

Kobura walks into the room. Sabre opened his eyes, revealing that he had a blue eye and a turquoise eye.

"Well, if it isn't the blind old snake." Astor said. (Imagine Yuri Lowenthal aka Mercury Black's voice.)

"It's about time. Do we need to start putting braille signs up?" Aya asked (Imagine Laura Bailey's voice). Kobura gave an annoyed grunt.

"I apologize for my rather late arrival, but I had to do some more monitoring." Kobura explained. He stood at the end at the table, on the opposite of the empty chair. Sabre glanced at the empty chair and frowned.

"You know, I'm beginning to grow sick of looking in front of me and seeing an empty chair." He said (Imagine Takeo Masaki's voice). "It's a constant reminder of what happened."

"Every time I walk in this temple, I'm reminded. And I don't appreciate my time going into being here, so what exactly did you monitor?" Hiryur said (Take Steve Blum's voice).

"The young specimen." Kobura said.

"The descendant of Ketsueki?" Mela asked (Claudia Black).

"Yes." Kobura said.

"We can worry about him later. I have a feeling you arranged this meeting for something else." Brookley said (Vanessa Marshall).

"You're feeling is correct." Kobura said. The six looked at each other and then back at Kobura.

"We're listening." Hiryur said.

A few seconds of a pause go by. Then Kobura spot up.

"It is time for us to unseal the tombs." Kobura said. The rest of the table back lashed except for Sabre Hu and Hiryur.

"Unseal the tombs? Are you insane?!" Astor asked.

"That'll doom us all." Brookley exclaimed.

"Are you trying to make us perish?! What are you think-"

The exclamations were interrupted by Sabre and Hiryur slamming their fists on the table. The four lieutenants stopped their commotion and went silent.

"Kobura. Their needs to be an explanation for this proposal. Considering what happened last time." Sabre said.

"Right. What happened last time was a very misfortunate event." Kobura said.

"Misfortunate? That's an understatement. Ā'ěrfǎ láng perished because of it. And they brought an entire continent with them." Aya explained.

"You say that like I am unaware." Kobura said.

"You talk like you're unaware. Unsealing the tombs is a suicide mission. That will doom us like it doomed them. Why are you asking us to do this?" Aya asked. Kobura went silent for a moment.

"We are not creatures of war. Nor are we a superpower. You have been granted with the powers of fallen stars, and have pledged your allegiances to your superiors. But Lie Ren has not done the same." Kobura said. The others look at each other, then back at Kobura.

"So what. One specimen has resisted the control of a Tatsu rank. No big deal, we can just-" Astor started, but was silenced as Kobura raised his hand.

"Brookley. Do you remember Brock?" Kobura asked.

"One of my best fighters that left because it was 'too boring' and 'didn't offer a challenge'? Yea, I remember him." Brookley answered.

"He died at the hands of Ren. His power with the Yami no Tenshi has increased since my last encounter with him. And he is continuing to get stronger." Kobura said.

"The Tatsu is increasing with power? That means-" Mela said.

"The Tatsu has pledged its allegiance to serve him." Aya said.

"No, worse. It befriended him." Hiryur said. All of them were shocked, except Sabre, who was more so annoyed with the idea of unsealing the tombs.

"We still need to know why we need to unseal the tombs." Sabre said. This silenced everyone again as they looked at Kobura.

"Unsealing the tombs is the best course of action." Kobura said.

"That will doom us like it did the Ā'ěrfǎ láng!"

"Not if we do it together!" Kobura snapped back. "The Ā'ěrfǎ láng weren't able complete the task because they did it alone. The Yami no Tenshi are like wolves. Alone, we struggle. Together, we conquer. If we all unseal the tombs, not only will we be an unstoppable force, but we can't rectify the sins that this world has committed. The sins the humans and the faunus have yet to come back to punish them. We can make sure that it does." Kobura said. They all look at one another.

"So you want us to unseal the tombs for justice instead of power? I gotta say, I'm surprised." Astor said.

"What do you hope to gain from this you old snake?" Hiryur asked.

"The satisfaction of ridding the world of the sins its inhabitants committed." Kobura said with haste in his voice. They all looked at one another and nod.

"Alright. We'll do it." Mela said.

"It will take us some time though. Give us 120 hours. We'll need it." Aya said.

"Unsealing the tombs is the equivalent of preparing for war. By doing this, we're nearly starting one. I hope you know what you're doing." Sabre said.

"You worry too much Mr. Hu. This is only step one. The other steps will be much more….. Detailed." Kobura said. The six lieutenants stood up and walked out of the tomb. As they did, Kobura sat down.

"One step closer to destroying this bloody curse." He said as he clenched his fist. Black aura and smoke briefly formed around his fist before disappearing. Then, he smirked.

(())

Ren continued to be walked off by Mercury and Emerald. As he was being hauled off, Ren started to talk to his Other Self. But making sure he wasn't out loud.

" _Are you there?"_ Ren asked in thought.

" _Is my assistance required_?" Other Ren asked.

" _Yes. Neo and I have a plan, and part one is complete. I need your help for part two._ " Ren replied in thought.

" _How can I be of assistance this time?_ " Other Ren asked.

" _How good is your combat ability?_ " Ren asked.

" _I have observed the fighting style of you, your allies, your ancestors and your opponents. Since I am consumed here, I have been training with what I have observed. The encounter with the Osoli was a merely one test of my strength."_ Other Ren said.

" _If I put you in control, will you allow me to get out of this mess alive?"_ Ren asked. Other Ren chuckled.

" _Of course._ " Other Ren said.

Ren then used his right hand to thumbs up. Neo saw this and smile.

" _Oh, and one more thing."_ Ren said. " _No wings._ "

" _Understood_." He said. The tribal dragon head appeared on his face. Mercury, who was on his right side, saw this. Then Ren's foot stepped onto the ground and stopped both Emerald and Mercury from dragging him. They pulled harder, but Ren wasn't budging. It was when they saw black aura aluminate from his forearms when they let go and back away.

Cinder turns around to see her two teammates back up.

Ren looked up, revealing his pitch black scleras and Dragon inked self.

Neo emerged from beside him.

"Neo! Get away from that thing!" Mercury said. Neo looked at Ren and smirked. Ren smirked back.

"That double crossing pint-sized little-" Before Emerald could finish what she was saying, Cinder launched a fireball at both Ren and Neo.

Ren dashes off behind a tree. Neo somersaults into a tree.

"Leave the Dark angel to me. I need to test his power." Cinder said as she launched a fireball into the tree she saw Ren hide behind. Emerald and Mercury nod and go after Neo.

[Cue- King of fighters xiii ost kdd-0063]

The tree falls, but Ren isn't behind it. Cinder looks around, but he wasn't seen.

Then she heard wind speed up behind her. She rolls out of the way of a stomp from Ren's foot. The stomp was enough to leave a crater.

Ren throws a kick to Cinder's torso. Cinder blocks it and fires a flame ball at him. Ren dodges it and throws two punches. Both were blocked. Ren performs a tornado kick with his right leg, followed by pivoting his leg for a second kick. This caused him to break the ground with his foot. Cinder backflips away to avoid it. She then spawns fire and fuse them with the broken rocks. Making it a molten rock. She then launches the molten rock to Ren. Ren leaned back and headbutted the rock. Shattering it to pieces.

" _Ouch_!" Ren exclaims from in his head.

" _You felt that_?" Other Ren asked.

" _Yes! Still my body!_ " Ren exclaimed.

" _Acknowledged, refraining from head based attacks._ " Other Ren said.

Cinder sent a fireball at Ren. Ren rolls out of the way. Cinder sent more. Ren dodges them all. Cinder sends a very large wave of fire. As big as Ren himself. Ren puts his fist into his palm and he became showed up on his skin. It was black combined with purple.

As the wave of fire consumed Ren, Cinder smiled. Her smile disappeared when Ren came through the fire and punched her in the face.

She flew backwards and landed on her back. She springs up, only to see Ren dash towards her.

Cinder summons a powerful gust of wind to slow him down. She then kicks up the dirt and places her hand in the air. With the yellow fabric on her sleeve glowing, and coalesces the dirt into several glass shards, which she aims at the Lotus ninja.

As the shard launched at him. Ren spawned a wing made of his aura and shielded him.

The wing disappeared and Cinder was shocked as he continued to advance. Ren continued to struggle against the wind. Cinder charges him.

Cinder manages to run into him, knocking him off his feet and through a tree. Cinder took this opportunity to send a fireball his way.

As Ren stood back up, he was knocked back to the ground by someone pushing him. Ren recovers to see who did it. He sees a young woman with tan-colored skin, short brown hair and icy blue eyes. She has a tattoo of a bird rising from flowers on her left arm. She wears a brown vest over a torn white shirt, with a collar that appears to spike up behind her neck. She wore maroon-colored pants with the right side rolled up to her thigh. She also wears dark brown knee guards that go down to her brown boots.

"Get moving! I'll deal with her!" She said. Ren snapped back into his conscious state.

"Who are you?" Ren asked. Another fireball was sent. Ren somersaults to dodge it as the woman brings down a lightning bolt that strikes the fireball to block it. This gave Ren his answer.

"The spring maiden." He silently said. The woman pulls out a deer horn knife.

"Where did you-" Before Ren could finish, he looked to his left and saw Raven run through the portal and snatched him up. She pulls Ren behind a tree as Vernal ran towards Cinder.

"What are you doing?" Ren asked.

"Saving you." Raven said.

"Where's Neo?" Ren asked.

"No clue. We need to go." Raven said. She grabs his arm, but he grabs her wrist with his other hand.

"No. Not yet."

"There's no time for this kid."

"We had a plan. I'm not leaving her behind." Ren said snatching away from her grip. He then ran off.

Raven face palmed.

"Ugh. Gotta admire his stubbornness." Raven said in a sarcastic tone and ran after him.

(())

Neo was slightly struggling to hold her own against the two fighters.

Neo delivered a vicious kick to Emerald's midsection, and then another to her head. Emerald flung out her arms, and tried to grab a hold of the smaller woman, but she simple spun to the side, grabbed Emerald's arm, and threw her to the ground.

Without missing a beat, Mercury jumps in and kicks her back. He then performs a spinning axe kick, sending a round her way. Neo uses her umbrella to block the shot. Mercury jump kicks her umbrella and the two briefly spar. However, Mercury gained the upper hand when Emerald wrapped her Kusarigama around Neo's foot and pull off her feet. Mercury quickly follows up with a kick, sending her bouncing into the ground.

As she stopped, Mercury charges her. Before he could get close, Ren dives into him and knocks him towards a tree, causing him to crash into it.

Emerald sees this and runs towards Ren. Ren sees this and steps to the side as she slashed at him. Upon dodging, Ren throws a powerful punch to her ribs, which sent her back, gripping the affected area.

Mercury charges in and assaults Ren with a barrage of kicks. Ren blocks them, grabs Mercury and connects a knee to his torso and follows with a left hook to his torso. He then grabs Mercury's arm and bends him over. Neo took the opportunity to hit mercury in the face with the end of her umbrella. Mercury spins as he stood back up straight. Ren spins around and snap kicks him in the face. Neo immediately hits him heavily with her umbrella. Mercury goes down.

Emerald throws her Kusarigama at Ren. Ren puts his arm up and the chain wraps around his arm.

Emerald attempts to pull, but the ink reappeared on his face. She couldn't pull him. In fact, he pulled her closer to him and then punches her back.

This prompted her to let go off that kusarigama. She lands towards the trees and looked towards the forest. Then she runs towards the trees.

"I'll take care of her." Ren said to Neo. She nods and Ren runs after Emerald. With her kusarigama in his hand.

(())

Ren ran a relatively far distance and slid to a stop. Emerald was currently nowhere to be found.

He made sure to listen very closely to his surroundings. She wasn't about to get the drop on him.

Emerald remained hidden in the tree as Ren stood still in the middle of the tree path. She had him in her sights and made sure to concentrate on him very hard.

However, despite her hard concentration, nothing was happening.

Ren still looked around as he looked for Emerald. That's when he 'felt' her presence in the tree. He used her kusarigama and wrapped it around her leg and pulled her out of the tree. As Emerald was dragged out of the tree, she attempts to recover but Ren ran over, and pinned her to the tree by her neck. He brings his fist back.

Emerald made the mistake of looking in Ren's eye. His pitch black scleras reminded her of Salem, and it terrified her. As she saw Ren's hand coming back, she tried to use her semblance. Upon realizing it wouldn't work, she closed her eyes to save her the pain of seeing it herself.

" _No._ " Ren said. His body stopped from throwing the punch. Ren turned back to normal and dropped his fist.

Emerald opened her eyes to see that she was still alive. Ren stands straight up and begins to walk off.

Emerald was gonna start talking, but Ren ran back to Emerald, picked her up and dashed behind another tree. Seconds later, a giant dinosaur grimm breaks the tree down and looks at where Ren and Emerald. It let out a roar.

"No. Not the Indominus! Anything but the Indominus!" Emerald said as she started to panic. Ren looked at her and the Indominus that was approaching. He then took out his StormFlower and activated his semblance on Emerald. He then runs out and shoots at the Indominus.

"Go! Run!" Ren said as he continued to gain the Indominus's attention. It follows him and Ren runs, allowing it to chase him. Emerald watched as this happened.

Ren took off running as the Indominus tailgated him. For a 20 foot tall dinosaur Grimm, it knew how to run.

(())

Neo had Mercury unconscious on the ground. She began to pull the sword version of her weapon out, but once getting it halfway out, she stopped. Hearing and feeling the rumbling, she looks up at where it came from. Ren was seemingly thrown out of the trees.

Neo looked at the Indominus and glared. Neo ran toward it. However, upon getting close, she was knocked back by its tail. The umbrella was knocked out of her hands and she was on the ground. The Indominus ran at her with its jaws open. Neo scoots back as it got closer.

The Indominus opens its jaws and was about to chop down on her. However, Ren made it just in the Nick of time.

Holding its jaws open, Ren gave Neo enough time to run. Neo gets up and runs toward her umbrella.

Ren used a lot of his might to keep the jaws from closing on him. Raven runs in and unsheathes her sword. She uses it to stab it in the eye, this resulted in the Indominus getting enraged.

It picks Ren up uses its tail to swipe away Raven. Raven is thrown back but immediately gets up. She runs as it does it again and this time, she jumps on the tail, and slashes it as she runs up its body. This did nothing but anger the beast.

As Raven jumped off the Indominus's head, it threw Ren into a tree and aimed its jaws at her.

Raven goes into Raven form as it got close and flew away as it attempted to eat her. She flies and lands in a branch of a nearby tree.

Emerald was hiding behind a tree as she was searching for an opportunity to run back to Cinder. However, her plan proved dysfunctional when the Indominus used its tail to knock down a lot of trees.

Emerald was hit by the trees and sent over the edge of the cliff. She held on for dear life, but her grip slowly slipped away. She calls for help.

Ren recovers and looks at the Indominus. That's when he heard Emerald's plea for help. The Indominus heard it too. Thinking fast, Ren activates his semblance and runs towards the cliff edge.

Emerald's grip became less and less by the millisecond. Her heart sank when it finally slipped. Ren grabs her wrist, preventing her from falling. Emerald looked at how far the the drop was and back at her Savior. Ren pulls her up until half her body was back on the cliff.

Emerald looked at Ren with shock, then the Indominus roared. They looked back at it. Ren stood up and faced it. Not at all knowing that his wings had sprouted. Upon taking two steps forward, a wolf howl was heard. Ren stopped and looked around. From the trees, a giant black wolf, around 16 feet tall, jumps in front of Ren and attacks the Indominus. It lunges at its neck and brings it to the ground. It continues its assault and pressed down on the Indominus's neck, moving its own head to increase its chances of killing it.

Soon the Indominus turns into smoke as it died. The wolf looks at Ren and howls. Ren noticed something about the wolf. It had pink eyes.

"Lotus?" Ren asked. The wolf then glows a white aura and slowly shrinks in size. It goes back to normal size and wags its tail. It was Lotus.

"Good boy." Ren said petting Lotus's head.

Emerald pulls the rest off her body up and looked at Ren. Neo and Raven ran to him. They looked at each other and nodded. They then ran back to Cinder.

Emerald watched as they ran off, and she looked back at the edge of the cliff. She couldn't believe that Ren saved her life. She also couldn't believe he didn't end it himself. He had two opportunities to do it, yet he refused.

She looked at Mercury's unconscious body and picks him up.

(())

Vernal was on one knee as Cinder approached her.

"A pity. The kid was a greater challenge than you. Maybe you should have spent more time training than fooling around with bandits." Cinder said.

"Oh, shut up you old bag." Vernal said spitting out a few drops of blood.

"Hmph, your attitude is something Salem will take a joy in breaking you from." Cinder said as she sparked fireballs with both hands.

"Don't worry. Your purpose will be forfill-" Before Cinder could finish, Ren's StormFlower was thrown at her. She manages to dodge it. She looks at where it was thrown from, only for Raven to run in and slash her back. It was quickly followed by Neo flipping over her and kicking her to the ground. As Cinder got back up, she watched as Vernal, Neo, Lotus, Raven and Ren all stood in front of her. Ren's StormFlower came back to his hands.

Emerald returns to her side with half conscious Mercury's arm over her shoulder.

Cinder soon realizes she's outmatched. She didn't possess enough endurance to take them all. She had to retreat.

"This isn't over." Cinder said. Neo was gonna approach but Cinder sends a wall of fire at the ground. This stopped her and allowed Cinder to escape.

"Damn." Raven said. Ren looked back at Vernal.

"You okay?" He asked.

"I'm fine pretty boy. She just got lucky, that's all." Vernal said. Ren walked over and offered her a hand. Vernal looks at it and accepts his hand.

"Thanks." She said. Ren nodded in response.

"So, what now?" Ren asked.

"Now, you need to head back to Mistral. Your friends are probably worried sick." Raven said. Ren have no argument there. He wanted to go back anyway. Neo sort of bumped her side against his and then pretended like she didn't mean to. Ren only chuckled.

"You want to come too don't you?" Ren asked. Neo nods.

Raven made the portal and stood next to it.

"Go on. They're waiting for you." Raven said with a smirk. Ren walked towards the portal and looked at her.

"So how do these portals work?" Ren asked.

"Not the time for a Q and A kid. Just know that this will take you to Qrow." Raven said.

"Fair enough." Ren said. He, Neo and Lotus all walked through the portal and it closed. Raven smirked and walked back towards the camp. Vernal followed her.

(())

Qrow stood at the edge of the a stone railing with his scroll in his hand. He looked at it in slight anger.

"This isn't right. I get one or two of them, but… all of them?" He asked himself. He hung his head in disappointment. That's when Raven's portal opened next to him.

"Raven?" He asked. However, instead of Raven, it was Ren, Lotus and Neo who stepped through it. Luckily, Ren's wings retracted back into his body.

"Oh." Qrow said from surprise. Ren gives a smile and waves to him. Qrow waves back.

"I see my sister gave you a hand." Qrow said. He then looked at Ren's new outfit.

"Like the new outfit." Qrow said.

"Thanks. Quick question, where are the-" Ren takes a step forward and a portal opens up. He and Neo fall through.

"Kid!" Qrow called. He runs that way, only for the portal to open wider and suck him in.

The portal's close and Lotus sniffs the ground and scratches it. He then sits down.

(())

Ren falls into a chair inside of a library like area with a desk in front of him. Neo, who fell through the portal with him, hadn't landed yet. Ren jumped out of the chair and pulled out his StormFlower. He looked around but saw nothing and no one. Qrow and Neo were nowhere to be seen or heard.

However, he noticed something on his StormFlower blades. One each blade were black dragons as long as the blades they were on. A black aura seemed to go into its sword.

"Mr. Ren." A voice said from the desk. Ren snaps and points his guns at the man in the chair behind the desk.

The man had a lightly tanned skin complexion with hair mid length hair looking like it mixed white and orange together. His eyes were also a dark grey color. He wore a short-sleeved quarter-zip black and yellow shirt with a visible white undershirt

"So glad that you could drop in." He said. He chuckles at what he said. "Sorry about that. Bad pun." He said.

"Who are you?" Ren said. He lowered his guns.

"My name is Saturn. And I apologize for the suddenly dropping you here, but I need to talk to you with the utmost urgency." Saturn said. Ren looked confused.

"Please. Have a seat." Saturn said gesturing to the chair Ren originally landed in. Ren placed his StormFlower on the desk beside it.

"No wait! Don't-"

It was too late. Ren placed his StormFlower on the desk and it breaks through the desk and then the floor.

"What the-" Ren started.

"Don't worry about that, I'll deal with that later." Saturn said. Ren sat down and looked at Saturn.

"You seem stressed. Tea?" Saturn asked. Suddenly a cup of tea appeared in Ren's hand, shocking him.

"What the?" Ren said. "Um… no."

"Ahhh, of course, do you prefer something….. Stronger?" Saturn asked.

"No, no. I just need-" Ren took his eyes off of his cup for a second, and it was suddenly a mug of a clear liquid. Obviously alcohol.

"You are aware that-"

"You're a minor? Yes. But that won't be leaving this room. Anyway-" Ren began to carefully drink his drink, which turned out to be balkin. "- I keep track of the rogue Yami no Tenshi and let's just say, you really caught my attention."

Ren finishes his drink and looks at Saturn.

"What makes you say that?" Ren said as his mug refilled in front of him. Ren looked with wide eyes.

"Well, other than the fact that you pretty much befriended your possessor, but your weapons also got an upgrade from the cosmos." Saturn explained.

"A what now?" Ren asked extremely confused. Saturn stands up and takes a deep breath.

"Allow me to explain." Saturn said. Suddenly, they were in a room with a lot of books. Ren's seat pretty much disappeared, and he landed on his bottom.

Saturn grabbed a book and flipped a page.

"You see, the existence of the Yami no Tenshi comes from the powers of a fallen star."

As Ren stood up he suddenly loses his balance and hits a shelf as he was suddenly in another room with him. He hears chalk hitting a board. He turns around to see Saturn drawing down what he was saying.

"When a star falls, it transfers its power and shifts it into the form of creature that resembles that of a Grimm. And they are currently sealed the way in the seven tombs." Saturn said. He turns around with a smirk on his face.

"Well, as of twenty years ago, six tombs. And when two fallen stars collide, they-" Ren found himself taking a step forward, only for stairs to appear. He falls down the stairs, tossing away the mug to keep from spilling any alcohol all over himself. He reaches the bottom to hear the rest of Saturn's dialogue.

"-infuse their energy to the weapon of those they seek as worthy." He finished. Ren gets off of the ground and looked at Saturn.

"Who? What are you?" Ren asked extremely confused by what happened. He took all that happened into account and manage to slightly understand a lot of what he talked about. But what or who Saturn was was an absolute mystery.

"Oh, don't worry, I'm human. It's just my semblance. Mysticism. I'm able to use it to manipulate my universe. You know, create portals, shift gravity, teleport. All that jazz." Saturn said. Before Ren could say anything, Saturn spoke up again. "However, it drains my aura _**Fast**_. And if it wasn't for Leia over there, I'd have no aura."

Ren looked behind him to see who he was talking about. He sees a black haired male in a baseball cap wearing a deep sky blue jacket with a black hood and rolled up black sleeves, open over a white shirt with long, rolled up sleeves and a pair of loose white pants rolled up to his knees. He was reading a book.

"That's Leia Drol. His semblance is Time Distortion. He's currently the reason that only uh…." He checks his watch. "One point twenty nine seconds went by."

"Wait. What?" Ren asked alarmed.

"Yea. Speaking of which, it's time for you to return. But before I do." Saturn creates a portal right above Ren and creates a second one next to that one.

Neo falls through the first one and Ren catches her. Qrow flies out in his bird form and faceplants onto the floor upon entering the room.

"I have been flying for an HOUR!" Qrow shouted.

"(Old man please! I had to hold onto an umbrella slowly descending for an hour and a half!)" Neo hand signaled frantically.

"Sorry about that, but I only needed to talk to Ren." Saturn said. Neo flipped out of Ren's hands and pointed the blade end of her umbrella at him.

"(Who are you?)" Neo demanded.

"I am not important to you."

"Then you have till the count of three to tell me! Otherwise, I'm gonna have a lot of blood on my hands!" Qrow said.

"Now now. There's no need to be hostile." Saturn attempted to reason in order to defuse the hostility.

"Just reached three." Qrow said as he approached Saturn. Neo followed.

"Time for you to go!" Saturn said as he spawned a portal back to the stone railing at the right moment as Neo and Qrow lunged. They jump through the portal and it closes.

"Uh-"

"Don't worry, they're back where I picked you guys up in the first place." Saturn said with a smirk.

"Okay." Ren said. "Can I go now? My friends are probably worried."

"Of course. We're reaching two seconds anyway. You might wanna get your weapon before we depart." Saturn said. Ren turned to look around, but Saturn spoke up.

"No need to look. When the energy fused with your weapon, it also bonded with you. You can retrieve it at anytime." Saturn explained. Ren gained a confused look on his face.

" _Stick your arm out and your weapon will come back to your grasp_." Other Ren said. Ren hesitated for a moment before sticking out his arm out. A bunch of crashing sounds were heard causing Ren to flinch.

"Sorry." Ren said.

"It's fine. I can fix it in no time." Saturn said. Ren's first StormFlower flies back into his hand, and the other one followed. Ren grabs that with his other hand and Saturn spawns in a portal.

"Goodbye." Ren said.

"Sayonara." Saturn said. Ren steps through.

(())

Two seconds after Lotus sat down, Neo and Qrow flew out of the portal towards the building.

Ren just steps through a different one. Lotus walks up and happily pounces on him.

"Ren? Who was that?" Qrow asked.

"A man with lots of info. At least I'm…. Less confused about this. But… " Ren stopped. He pulled his StormFlower out and looked at the two dragons on it. It did confuse him, but he couldn't lie. It did look pretty cool.

Suddenly, their door opens up and Nora and Ruby ran inside.

"Uncle Qrow! We have a problem." Ruby said as she and Nora ran to the stone railing.

"Ren has been… gone?" Nora stopped as she saw Ren standing there with his neutral look on his face.

"Heh, hey guys." Ren said.

(())

"I'm so sorry for all of this Blake." Ilia said. Blake took all of what was said in.

"Adam needs to be stopped. He has gone too far and he has brought the White Fang with him. Faunus kind will be doomed because of him." Blake said with slight enragement. Ilia was yet to tell her the worst part.

"Blake, I'm afraid that's only-" Ilia was interrupted by the door opening. Nora and Ruby had Ren's arms as they dragged him inside.

"We found Ren!" They said.

"Ren, I need to-" Before Blake could finish, Ilia hops off the table, runs towards Ren and glomps him. Nearly knocking him over. Ren regains his balance as Ilia placed her head on his chest. Ilia hugged him tightly.

"I'm so sorry about-" Ilia stopped talking upon realizing something. Her head wasn't touching a cloth, it was touching skin. Bare skin with a little bit of bandages. She looks and saw that she was resting her head on Ren's partially exposed chest. She flushes and dashes back.

Ruby blushed and looked away, Nora folded her arms and looked away, and Blake simply glared.

"Sorry Ren." She said.

"It's fine. Are you okay?" Ren asked referring to her injured side.

"I'm okay. Thank you." Ilia said.

"Ren? Where have you been?! We were worried sick!" Nora said.

"You've been gone for five hours. We were all scared." Ruby said, much calmer than Nora.

"I need to talk to you." Blake said.

"What's with the outfit?" Ilia asked with a slight head tilt.

"I was at Raven's camp, I'm sorry for the scare, I'll make sure we talk, and Raven gave it to me." Ren answered back to back.

"You were at Yang's mom's camp?" Nora asked. Ren nodded.

"Why did she give you those clothes?" Blake asked.

"Mine were thrown away because of the blood." Ren said.

"Blood?!" All four of the girls exclaimed.

"Afraid so. So she gave me these as a replacement." Ren explained. They were very surprised at this. Not because Ren was at Raven's camp, but the fact that Ren was naked for five hours while he was there.

"Is this a bad moment?" Oscar asked. He was significantly less shy and more confident. He also spoke like Ozpin.

"No, but why are you talking like that?" Ilia asked.

"Oscar has given me control over his body, but he is still mentally here." Ozpin explained.

"He can do that?" Nora asked.

"Well, his soul did merge with him." Ruby said.

" _Please don't do anything embarrassing._ " Oscar asked mentally.

"I don't think he will." Ren said. Everyone looks at him with a confused expression.

"He can hear Oscar in the mental state too. Interesting." Ozpin said.

"Okay, I am completely lost." Ilia said.

"I know this is very perplexing." Ozpin said.

"And alarming, and bizarre, but… at the same time, really cool!" Nora said.

"Glad to see Miss. Valkyrie's cheerfulness hasn't left her." Ozpin chuckled. "Hmm….. Where's Mr. Arc?"

"Fox and Velvet are looking for him." Blake said.

"Team CFVY is here? I didn't know they would come here. However, I have some things I need to tell you. Spread the word to the rest of your team Ms. Rose, and to Mr. Arc." Ozpin said. He walks over and takes a seat.

"First things first. I need to apologize. This is my fault." Ozpin said.

"How is this your fault?" Ruby asked.

"When I told you that I made more mistakes than any man, woman, and child on this planet, and I wasn't exaggerating. I'm... cursed. For thousands of years, I've walked the surface of Remnant, living, dying, and reincarnating in the body of a like-minded soul. The Professor Ozpin you all met was not my first form, and clearly wasn't my last. It's... an extraordinarily strenuous process on everyone involved." Ozpin explained. They all looked amongst each other.

"So, who….. What are you?" Ilia asked.

"I am the combination of countless men who've spent their lives trying to protect the people of Remnant. With every rebirth, my soul is eventually merged with another and I am changed, but my memories stay with me. This curse was bestowed upon me by the gods because I failed to stop Salem in the past. But we must stop her now." Ozpin said. Upon hearing the word curse, Ren looked at his arm. He blinks and a flashback of what happened in the forest occured. What that Kobura guy did to him, and how much it burned. His flashback ended upon blinking again.

"Mr. Ren. Lionheart sent you after the relic of knowledge, correct?" Ozpin asked.

"Yes, it was still there." Ren confirmed. "But Lionheart has been acting strange. He and the other headmasters take orders from you, right?"

"That _was_ the intention. Four lieutenants I can trust, especially during times of reincarnation. But Qrow told me about your meeting with Leonardo. (he gets up and walks towards a painting of Mistral) He isn't just behaving irrationally, he's disobeying specific instructions I had left him. Something's wrong. I don't want to jump to conclusions, but I don't want to rule out any possibilities, either. No one outside of this room, except Lionheart, knows that I've paired with Oscar, and I think it may be best to keep it that way."

"I think letting him know was a mistake." Ren said. The others looked at him.

"What makes you say that?" Nora asked.

"I'll explain when I find a better way to do so." Ren said.

" _I'd spit if I was in control._ " Other Ren said.

" _Who was that?!_ " Oscar asked.

"So what now?" Ruby asked.

"First, I need to talk to Qrow about the other hunters." Ozpin said, ignoring Oscar.

"And then what?" Blake asked.

"Getting all of you involved in shape." Ozpin said. The five of them exchanged glances.

"We already know how to fight." Ruby said. Ozpin's cane appeared in his hand and he pointed it at Ruby.

"You can only fight so long as you have Crescent Rose, but you're still lacking in hand-to-hand combat." Ozpin said.

"Right." Ruby said. Ozpin spins his cane.

"Mr. Arc has yet to unlock his semblance. And Ren." Ozpin said. He then pointed his cane at Ren.

"And Mr. Ren, you definitely need to train with your newfound power." Ozpin said.

"You have already trained it to take control of your body when you need it to take over. But that is only step one." Oscar said.

"Step one?" Ren asked.

"The next step is you controlling the abilities it has given you. Otherwise, it may overwhelm your subconscious." Ozpin explained. Ren nods in understanding.

"And though Oscar can give me temporary control, he'll need to strengthen his body and his Aura."

" _Wait. What?_ " Oscar asked.

"He'll inherit my muscle memory in time, but practice will expedite the process." Ozpin said.

"But, who's gonna teach us?" Ruby asked. Ozpin smirked and propels himself into the air with his cane, spinning counterclockwise into a barrel roll before landing onto the seat of the armchair, twirling his cane. Everyone looked at him in surprise.

"Well, I believe I _was_ the headmaster of Beacon Academy." Ozpin emphasised. "We have approximately one month before classes resume at Haven. If Salem were to plan an attack, it would make sense that it would occur prior to students' return. It's not much time, but it's better than nothing. (he stops twirling his cane) Just don't expect me to go easy on you."

Suddenly, he glows green and white, switching control back to Oscar. Upon being back in control, Oscar found himself having a hard time keeping his balance on the armchair before falling backwards.

He groans upon hitting the floor.

"You gotta be kidding me." He says.

"This is gonna be interesting." Nora said.

"Ren, can we talk now?" Blake asked.

"Sure." Ren said as he followed her to the next room.

(())

Jacques was walking with his son to an area outside of the mansion. Whitley looked very nervous.

"Now Whitley, I know you're nervous, but you see. With the Atlas military no longer associated with us, some drastic changes need to be made."

"But, father. How is this a good idea?" Whitley asked, a bit of his voice shaking.

"Because Whitley. It's business. When plan A fails, plan B needs to be on speed dial." Jacques said.

"But father, the Zaibatsu was made for business, not… that."

"I've made a few changes. For the sake of the family. Now this is a big decision to make, and I know you need some time to think. I know you will make the right decision." Jacques said placing a hand on his son's shoulder. "I'll be waiting for when you do."

"Okay." Whitley said. He walks off with his hands behind his back. Upon being a safe distance from his father, he whispered to himself.

"Father has lost his mind."

(())

Klein walked towards Jacques. He had a platter of wine in his hand.

"Your wine sir." He said. Jacques takes the wine off of the platter and takes a sip.

"Sir. What's this I hear about the Zaibatsu being prepared for war?" Klein nervously asked.

"It shouldn't concern you Mr. Sieben." Jacques said.

"S-sir. Do you know how dangerous that is?" Klein asked, with his voice shaking.

"Some risks need to be taken."

"What would the public think of this? Do you know the repercussions that will happen from this result?" Klein asked.

"Of course."

"What will the public think of this?"

"Believe me Klein, the public won't know."

"And how do you know that?"

Jacques looked at him and finished his wine.

"Because the only rat they can question has been killed." Jacques said. Soon, Klein's mouth was covered and he was stabbed in the back. A soldier, wearing a uniform similar to the Atlas military lacking a helmet, dug the blade deeper and held his mouth closed. Klein tried to rebel, but it was too late. His body goes limp and his eyes close.

"Dispose of this traitor's body. Ironwood sealed of the borders, but with the Zaibatsu in progress, that won't matter."

"Understood sir." The soldier said. He drags Klein's body off. Jacques finished his wine and walks back into the mansion.

(())

Ironwood's ship has been damaged drastically, but it was still flyable.

Penny flew back inside of the ship with her new thruster wings. She had sustained damage to her left arm, but she was fine.

"Are you okay Penny?" Winter asked.

"My left arm as sustained minimal damage, but It is survivable." Penny said as she retracted her thruster wings. Her blueness also turned back to green.

"I think we need to take care of that arm." Winter said.

"The damage is minimal, I do not require repairs." Penny said innocently.

"Well, it'll only get worse is we leave it like that." Winter said.

"I'm gonna set the ship down over here, it's too damaged to go any farther." Ironwood said. He proceeded to land the ship on the coast of Mistral. He parks it their and exits the ship. Winter and Penny followed.

"Let's get you somewhere to deal with that arm." Ironwood said. Winter nodded, grabbed Penny's hand and walked with him.

Meanwhile, two masked men walked into view. The mask the first man had on, resembled an eagle. He wore the standard pants and black gloves of other White Fang members, but his forearms have metal guards. His hair was bright white and had spikes backward in a windswept way.

The second one was a human in a black variant of the white fang uniform with a similar hair style. He didn't wear a mask. He was a Chosen Loyal.

"Looks like Ironwood crossed the border. Adam would be pleased to hear this." The white fang goon said. Then two men emerge from the bushes. One of them had a skin complexion similar to emerald's and wore a musketeer hat with a red feather, a dark red hoodie with the sleeves cut off, and two bracers on his arms extending from the wrist to just below the elbow. These bracers have a silver-colored claw emblem printed on them. The other one had a slightly lighter complexion and wore a white long coat with asymmetrical sleeves, a green wing design similar to his tattoos and no shirt underneath, displaying his tattooed chest. He had a deck of cards in his hand.

"I'm afraid Adam won't be finding out." The musketeer hatted man said. The two turn around.

"What the?" The white fang goon said turning around.

"Who are you?" The chosen loyal demanded.

"I'm Night, and this is Crimson." The one holding the deck of card introduced. Crimson started walking toward them.

"What do you want?" The white fang asked. Crimson smiled and put his hands behind his back.

"Simple really." He said. His hands balled into fists and three claws came out of his knuckles.

"Your lives." Night said. Crimson brought his arms from behind his back and charged.

(())

 **Finally finished. I'm sorry I took so long to finish, but, I was on vacation, so I was on break.**

 **I made a few references to certain reviewers.**

 **SaturnNights**

 **Aiellord**

 **And Crimson.**

 **Next will be Sm0key Panda, Scarviex and whoever else wants to review this story.**

 **Also, the next five chapters might be focused on humor and the Harem, but because of recent RWBY episodes, maybe not.**

 **Please review.**

 **Also, Raven is winning with 14 votes.**

 **The voting will continue, I might put up a poll, but continue voting.**

 **The runner ups are:**

 **Blake and Yang- 8**

 **Ilia- 7**

 **Neo and Ruby- 6**

 **See ya in the next chapter. Peace.**


	17. Training part 1

Chapter 16: Training Part 1

"I severely underestimated him. He was indeed a lot more powerful than we anticipated." Cinder said. She was talking to the seer that was showing Salem on the other side.

"It seems you and I have made the same mistake." Salem said. "I should've known the Lotus wouldn't just come quietly."

Salem then scratched her chin and then sighed.

"Something wrong?" Cinder asked.

"Looks like we'll have to go with negotiations." Salem said.

"Negotiations?" Cinder asked.

"Two days ago, Kobura, an old comrade of mine, gave me an offer. I refused because I had confidence in those who worked for me. Now, I see I don't have a choice but to give him the winter maiden." Salem said, slightly disappointed.

"You don't have to. We can find another way." Cinder said.

"Do you have a plan?" Arthur asked.

"Well…. No." Cinder said. Arthur shook his head.

"We'll think of something. It won't be impossible." Mercury said.

"You do not have to resort to giving up the Winter maiden. She is important to what we plan on doing. I'll figure something out." Cinder said. Salem only looked back at her.

"Do not disappoint me." She said. The seer then erases the image. As this happened, Mercury looked at Emerald, who was sitting by the window of the ship they were in.

"You holding up okay Em?" He asked. She sort of jumped upon hearing this suddenly.

"Oh, y-yeah." She said. She was replaying what happened in her head. Ren sparing her life, and then saving it. She knew not why he did that, nor what he was thinking when he did it. But her two near death experiences kind of shook her up.

"Emerald. I have an assignment for you." Cinder said. This, once again, startled her. She immediately stood up, ready to listen.

"I'm going to have you head to Mistral and find the Dark Angel. If we can get his location, we can grab him without retaliation." Cinder said.

"Sneaking up on him won't work. His perception is too great." Emerald pointed out.

"So, we set up a trap. One he won't expect." Mercury said.

"Regardless, we're gonna need some extra power in order to take him down. Salem has told me that the Yami no Tenshi aren't easy to take down, even with the fall maiden's power." Cinder said.

"Yea no kidding." Mercury commented. "You mentioned needing extra power. Where exactly are you going to get that power?"

Cinder went quiet for a moment as she didn't know. But surprisingly, Watts spoke up.

"I think I may know someone." He said. He then gets on his scroll and dials a number in. A few seconds later, a voice picks up.

"Hello?" The voice asked from the other side.

"Mr. Ari. I would like to ask a favor." He said.

(())

Ren was in a normal fighting stance as Ruby ran at him. She threw two punches, both of which were easily deflected. Ren counters with a reverse roundhouse. It was slow enough for her to dodge it, but she still struggled to dodge it. She sees an opening and throws a punch to it. Ren catches the punch.

"Keep your arm from coming back when you punch." Ren said.

"Right." She said.

Lotus was sitting next to some towels next to Neopolitan, watching the fight. They moved their heads with the movement of the fighters.

Ruby corrected herself and threw a less obvious punch. Ren blocked. He had his new gauntlets on, and they absorbed the impact of the attack. Ruby shook her hand a little.

"That hurt a little." She said.

"You'll get used to it." Ren replied.

They were both a little sweaty, as they had been training for fifty five minutes.

"Mind if I ask you a question?" Ruby asked. She then used her semblance to close the distance and attack. However, Ren blocked the attacks, easily.

"Go ahead." Ren said. Ruby added a kick towards Ren's shins. Ren blocked it with said shins. Ruby attacks more times and Ren continued blocking.

"What were you and Blake talking about?" She asked. She throw a punch, but Ren catches it and throws her over his shoulder. In a way so she wasn't hurt… much.

"Well, she told me some pretty personal things." Ren started. Ruby sat up with a small groan.

"She did?"

"Yes. More specifically, her home in Menagerie. And her friend Ilia." Ren said.

"Ilia…..? Oh, the chameleon girl." Ruby said. Ren chuckled. "What, what about them?"

"She said, she feared she may have made a huge mistake leaving her home so soon." Ren started. He offers his hand to Ruby, she accepts. Upon being pulled to her feet, Ren took a few steps back and got in his fighting stance. Ruby does the same.

"The white fang are everywhere. She made that very clear." Ren said. He charges in. Ruby got ready to defend. Ren threw a couple of punches for her to defend against. Going a little faster than before. She blocked the punches.

Ren added a leg sweep. She barely moves her foot in time. Ren adds a jumping spin kick to her torso that she couldn't block. She was knocked to the ground.

"But she fears that since she left, the activities of the White fang increased. That they're building more and more every second." Ren said. He rotated his shoulder as a stretch.

"She does?" She said getting up and attacking. Ren defended, causing 90% of those punches to be blocked. They take a break after ten seconds.

"Yes. And she has a right to. After what they did to beacon, I'd be surprised if there wasn't someone who feared them, but that wasn't all she said." Ren said. Ruby began to rub her arm as it was starting to hurt.

"Here, let me help." He said. He grabbed her arm and began to rub it to help ease the pain. Ruby's cheeks began to turn light pink.

"She also added that she felt guilty about the Faunus she left behind. As if she gave up on them." Ren said. Ruby looked at him with a tilted head, implying she was confused.

"When she left, she never told anyone but Adam goodbye. Those who called her friends, those who called her family, those who um…." Ren started. He had remembered what Blake said.

" _I may have been blind before, but now I see that Ilia was jealous of the way I looked at Adam." Blake said, her voice slightly broken._

" _She wanted me to look at her like that."_

Ren cleared his throat, and tried to find the correct words to use for her.

"Um…. Well, let's just say someone who found her very special." Ren said. Ruby nodded in understanding.

"So, Blake is having regrets on coming back?" Ruby asked. There was a small pause.

"It sounded more like she regretted leaving unfinished business behind." Ren said. Ruby nodded in understanding before looking at Ren's legs.

"Is your arm still so-" Before Ren could finish, Ruby tripped his leg and gave him a push causing him to fall. He managed to regain his balance. Ruby attempts to tackle him, but Ren moved out of the way. Ruby used her semblance in order to close the distance and she performed a high kick that Ren dodged by leaning back. Ruby performs a spinning heel kick, which was caught. Ren forces her back onto the ground.

"Well, I see training is going well." Oscar said in Ozpin's tone. The two of them looked at him and stopped there spar.

"I have come to check on Ms. Rose's progress." He continued.

"We're doing great, Ren is a really good teacher." Ruby said with a smile. Ren smirks back. Ruby walked over to the towels.

"How was her training?" Ozpin asked.

"She's doing great. She's a very fast learner." Ren said. Ruby beamed a smile. "But, she needs to refrain from high kicking while wearing a skirt." He continued.

Ruby let out a gasp and placed her hands over the top of her skirt. She had a beet red blush on her face.

" _I wish I didn't hear that._ " Oscar said in embarrassment. Ozpin chuckled.

"Are you ready for your own training?" Ozpin asked. Ren nodded in response.

"Very well, I will take Ms. Rose and train with her for the time being, you concentrate on mastering your abilities." Ozpin said. Ren nods and Oscar regained control. Ren placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Good luck with your training." He said.

"You too." Oscar said. He walked away with Ruby.

"Is something wrong ruby?" Oscar asked. Ruby looked back at Ren with a small smirk.

"I guess this was how Nora felt." Ruby muttered.

"What?" Oscar asked.

"N-nothing." Ruby said as she lead the way to where they could train.

Ren walked towards the edge of the stone railing and looked at the city of Mistral.

"Hey, are you there?" Ren asked.

" _Yes, I am."_ His other self replied in his head.

"So, um….. I'm ready to train myself in using my given powers." Ren said.

" _Hmm, Very well."_ Other Ren said. A silence fell between them.

"Um….. How do I start?" Ren asked.

" _I have no idea." Other Ren said._

"Well this is just awkward." Ren said. He then began to think.

"Do you mind telling me the powers I have?" Ren asked.

" _Right away._ " Other Ren said. After a few seconds, Other Ren spoke up again.

" _Flight, Two layers of aura, Enhanced Strength, Enhanced Recovery, Enhanced Durability, Semblance Dispel, outer body sight, Enhanced-"_

"Wait. Outer body sight?" Ren pointed out. "What's that?"

" _Outer body sight is when I wander around. If you close your eyes as I take my amble, you'll be able to see what I see."_ Other Ren explained.

"Is that how you were able to find out the relic was in danger?" Ren asked.

" _That was danger intuition, the second last of the abilities._ " Other Ren said. Ren gave a nod to that.

"So… how do I control these abilities?" Ren asked.

" _Concentrate on them._ " Other Ren said. Ren raised an eyebrow.

"It's that simple?" Ren asked.

" _Yes._ " Other Ren said.

"Um…. okay then." Ren said. He sat down in his meditation posture and closed his eyes. He let out some calming breaths and concentrated on one of his powers. Soon he felt a sharp pain in his back. This resulted in him snapping his eyes open. He inhaled sharply, and felt his back to see if something impaled him, but instead, he felt feathers sticking out of his back. He looked over his shoulder to see a black wing. He looks over his other shoulder to see the second wing.

" _Impressive, that was surprisingly fast."_ Other Ren said.

"Why does that hurt?" Ren asked.

" _It was your first time spawning your wings._ " Other Ren said.

"No its not." Ren said.

" _Consciously, it is. You had full control of bringing out your wings and consciously brought them out. It hurt because they suddenly grew from your back."_ Other Ren explained. Ren looked at his wings.

"So, I basically grew two new limbs?" Ren asked.

" _Putting it unambiguously, yes._ "

Ren looked at his wing and decided to see if he could move them. To his surprise, and delight, he could.

"Hmm…" Ren said. He then looked at both of his wings and stretched his wings out.

"Do they stay on me until I think about taking them away?" Ren asked.

" _Yes._ "

"Good to know." Ren said. He goes down on one knee, placing his hand on the ground. He then uses his wings to fly up at high altitude. He flapped his wings to keep him up, not flying up anymore.

"This is surprisingly easy." Ren said.

" _The hardest part is keeping your stamina._ " Other Ren said. Ren started to descend back down to the ground and lands on his feet.

" _Stamina shouldn't be an issue for you though. I granted you with better stamina._ " Other Ren said.

"Thank you." Ren said. He brought his wing around so he could inspect it. He felt it in order to see what it was made of. To his surprise, they were hard, yet soft feathers. This would give him the ability to fly, and provide a defensive shield.

In other words, he liked it. He then looked at the gauntlets on his hands and got an idea.

He got into a fighting stance and began to train in combat, while using his wings.

(())

Fox and Velvet another room. Due to the training hall being closed, Jaune wasn't there. So they decided to look elsewhere. They had no luck.

"It's been forty five minutes, where could he be?" Fox asked clearly frustrated.

"I don't know. Why would Jaune just disappear like that?" Velvet asked.

"I don't know Velv, but this isn't right. Something's up. We have to keep-"

Their conversation was cut short when the door leading outside of the hotel opened. They looked and saw Jaune leaning against the doorway, clearly struggling to stand on his feet.

"Jaune!" Fox exclaimed as he ran over to assist him. He puts Jaune's arm over his shoulders to keep him upright.

"Jaune, are you okay?" Velvet asked.

"(slurring) Yea, I'm fine. Just a little. *hic* Wait….. What was the question?" Jaune asked.

"Oh for Pete's sake, you're drunk." Velvet said as she facepalmed.

"And you're sexy." Jaune said back. Fox glared.

"We gotta get you back to the room, come on." Fox said as he helped walk Jaune.

"ROAD TRIP!" Jaune cheered. Fox gagged.

"Goodness his breath is stinking of that stuff. What did you drink? Straight ethanol?" Fox complained before realizing his mistake. "You know what? No talking, I'll pass out."

"Follow me, I'll guide you there." Velvet said as she walked back.

(())

Weiss and Yang were walking back to the hotel.

"What exactly is a problem so important that he had no time for us?" Yang asked as she stormed back.

"Take it easy Yang, he's got a lot of things to take care of." Weiss said.

"What is more important than our missing friend? For nearly six hours he has been gone and it was because of him!" Yang said.

"Okay, fair point, but we can't confront him now. He's really busy." Weiss said. Yang rolled her eyes.

They arrive back at the hotel and walk in.

(())

Ren had managed to get used to using his wings to combat as well.

Neo had gotten something to drink as he trained and watched, clearly liking what she was seeing. Lotus also watched, while he was panting.

Ren stopped to take a small break as he sweated from his forehead, his muscles and his chest. Then, he felt someone's presence. He started to look around, not yet finding said presence.

Neo noticed this and grabbed her umbrella. Lotus stood and got ready for anything.

Suddenly, a male figure leaps from higher ground to in front of Ren. He lands in front of Ren on all fours.

He wore some kind of dark red and black suit that covered all of his body. He wore a black mask with dark red linings resembling a feline covering all but the top of his head. His hair was long dreadlocks going down to his back. He had a tiger tail, implying he was a faunus.

He gets into a brief kung fu tiger stance, letting out a tiger like roar. He then runs towards Ren.

Neo jumps in front of his path and attacks. However, she was overtaken and kicked back several feet. Ren ran towards him, the man showed his claws and ran towards Ren.

The man struck, Ren blocked the hit with his arm, but slid back. The man slashed at Ren with his claws. Ren forms an X formation with his arms to block it. The strike knocked his guard down and the follow up claw attack going across Ren's chest caused his aura to shimmer.

Neo flip kicked at the man, but it did nothing. The man grabbed her leg and throws her off towards the opening. Right as Ruby and Oscar returned.

Ruby quickly grabbed her scythe and ran towards the man. Lotus attempted to pounce at him. The man jumps onto the scythe and flips onto the roof of the building.

Ren was on one knee as he looked at him.

Oscar walked out and looked at the man.

"Who are you?! Why were you attacking my friend?!" Ruby demanded. The man said nothing and dropped down. He stood up straight and looked at the four plus wolf standing in front of him.

Ruby tightened the grip on Crescent rose as the man looked at all of them. Then he looked at Ren and kept his glance at him.

Noticing this, Ruby and Neo stood in front of him.

"If you want him, you'll have to go through us." Ruby said.

The man got into his fighting stance. With a blur, he suddenly appeared beside Neo. Ren noticed this before anyone else. Ren moved Crescent rose into that direction and pulled the trigger. The man dodges the shot fired and while he was distracted, Neo used the hook end of her umbrella to trip him.

This proved to go against her favor as the man backflip kicked her. Ruby aims and fires at him.

The man stood there and took the shots, not even flinching. Ruby looked shocked. The man runs towards her with his claws ready.

Ren pulled her in close and used his wing to block the claw strike. To his surprise, it didn't go through his wing.

Oscar looked at Ozpin's cane and looked at the man. He runs in.

" _Oscar, No!"_ Ozpin said. But it was too late, he had already swung the cane. The man leans back to dodge, flips and brought his foot down on top of his head. Upon landing, he kicked oscar in the face, resulting in him behind knocked away.

Ren attacked him. Throwing various punches and kicks that were either blocked or dodges.

The man then grabs Ren's arm and trips him. Ren hits the ground hard.

(())

Velvet opens the door for Fox as he help Jaune into the room. Upon doing so, they saw Ren tripped onto the ground by a mysterious man. Well, Velvet saw it whereas Fox heard it.

Fox walks Jaune to the couch and places him down.

"Stay here!" Fox ordered. Velvet nodded. Fox runs out towards the man.

(())

Ren rolled to his feet and looked at the man.

"Who is this guy?" Ren asked out loud. The man snaps around to block a punch from Fox. Fox added in knee attacks only for them to be blocked.

He then throws a roundhouse kick. The man drops down and swipes Fox's leg. Fox trips and hits the ground. Fox springs up, but before he could charge in, a piercing sound hit his ears. Hurting him, Fox grunts and grasped his head.

Ren looked at Fox and then looked at the man seeing him press a button on his arm. Fox's grunts of pain stopped.

Ren stuck out his arm.

(())

Nora and Ilia walked into the room to see Jaune on the couch, Velvet looking towards the door and Ren sticking his arm out towards on of the windows. Before they did anything, Ren's Stormflower flew towards the window, broke through it and went into his hands. He shot at him.

The man moved to the side to avoid the shots. Nora and Ilia grabbed their weapons and ran towards him. Nora jumps into the air and attempted to hit him with Magnhild. He grabbed the hammer and threw her off to the side. Ilia whipped at him. The man blocked with his arms.

At one point she attempted to electrocute him. However, he wasn't affected by it. While she was shocked, the man grabbed the rest of the whip and threw her into Ruby.

Ren reached out for his other StormFlower. The man kicked his hand, grabbed Ren by the neck and throw him into the ground.

Qrow ran in and struck with his sword, in scythe form. The man dodged it and stood in the middle.

Ren sticks out his arm and gets his other StormFlower and aims at the man. Nora and Ilia did the same.

"Enough!" The man exclaimed. This surprised everyone enough to stop in there tracks.

"You attack me and my friends unprovoked, and then you surrender? Why?" Ren asked.

"I am not surrendering. I have simply seen, enough." The man said. Ren walked towards Ruby, not taking his eyes off of the man as he helped her up. "I wanted to test the abilities of the Rogue Yami no tenshi first hand."

The man reaches for his mask and takes it off. The man had dark brown skin, and dark red eyes.

"My name is Aka Tora." The man introduced.

"What's your business here?" Qrow asked, ready to attack at a moment's notice.

"On my own accord, I came to test the skills of this young lotus and see if he was ready." Aka said. Ren looked at him confused.

"For what?" Ren asked.

A small silence hits the air before talking.

"The Yī Uingudo." Aka said. Qrow looked at Oscar, who looked back, they then brought their attention back to Tora.

"The one winged?" Ren asked. Ozpin knew what that meant.

"How do you know about the Yī Uingudo?" Ozpin asked.

"That is yet to be revealed. The information I hold will be continued that way until all are present and… sober." Tora commented as he looked at Jaune. Jaune lets out a drunken burp.

"The kid went drinking without me. Disappointing." Qrow commented.

"Just know that for the threats that are coming,you are not ready to defend against them." Tora said as he began to walk away.

"Hey, aren't you going to tell us what the Yī oogy, Yī ooga, er….. One Winged is?" Ruby asked.

"That information will be given when you need it most. Take my advice, train for it. Or be torn apart." He said. Before anyone could say anything, he disappeared.

They looked amongst each other.

Jaune was snoring implying he was asleep.

"Did Jaune go out drinking?" Ruby asked.

"Oh definitely. I can smell his breath from here." Fox said. Ren nodded in agreement.

"Whoever or Whatever the Yī Uingudo are, we clearly aren't ready for them. That guy completely tore us a new one." Ilia said. The others nodded in agreement. There was a knock on the door.

Ren, being the closest to the door, goes to answer it.

Yang and Weiss stormed into the room. Yang, a little more upset than Weiss.

"Unbelievable, Lionheart would not talk to us the entire time. Does he not know how important Ren is to us?" Yang exclaimed. Ren was about to open his mouth, but Yang was already on edge.

"45 minutes of waiting on this guy to finish his previous conversation, and what do we get for our patience? Basically a kick in the face because he said he didn't have the time!" Yang ranted.

"Yang?" Ruby called. Weiss turned to look at Ren, who closed the door. Weiss opened her mouth and was gonna talk, but Yang ranted again.

"Who could he have been talking to that was so time-consuming that he had no time to find our friend!?" Yang exclaimed.

"Yang." Weiss called.

"I think something's up with that man, and we need to figure it out fast!"

"Yang!" All of them but Ren and velvet shouted.

"What!?" Yang shouted as she turned around. She had red eyes before seeing Ren. Her eyes blink and go back to lilac.

"Ren! Where have you been?!" Yang asked before looking at what he was wearing and his wings.

"What's with the new outfit?" Yang asked.

"Mine were thrown away, it's a long story that I'll explain later I just need to-"

Another knock came from the door. Ren threw his hands up in frustration before going to answer the door.

He opens it and sees two girls. Twins, one of them wearing green, the other one wearing red. Both of them were the same height, however, the one wearing green had long hair and the one wearing red had short hair. These were Melanie and Militia Malachite.

"Can I help you?" Ren asked. The one wearing red wasn't even looking at Ren, she was looking at his exposed chest. The one in green stuttered as she spoke.

"Uh um. M-my name is Melanie and this is my sister Militia. A-and um…. Well, we we are here because someone left our bar without paying the money they owed." Melanie said.

"Actually, he just came up a little short." Militia said finally looking up. Ren looked back at Jaune and facepalmed. He looks back at the twins and sighes.

"How much?" Ren asked.

"100Ⱡ." They said in unison. Ren walked away and towards the kitchen.

"Who was it?" Ilia asked.

"Doubt collectors for Jaune's hangover." Ren answered. He goes and grabs his wallet and digs inside it.

"Good thing I didn't bring my wallet with me during that mission." He said to himself.

He hears a portal open, he looks towards it, only for something to hit him in the face. He rubs the affected area and looks at what hit him as the portal disappeared.

There was a note held in place with a rubber band attached to a scroll. He picks it up and read the note.

 _Here's your new scroll, consider it a gift, and a thank you. When you get this thing, text me._

 _~Raven B._

Ren took the note off and placed it in his pocket and checked the scroll. Everything from his previous scroll was on his new one. He smirked, went to Raven's contact and texted her.

'Thanks.' He texted. A few seconds later he receives one back.

'Don't mention it. We'll talk later okay? ;)' Raven texted back. Ren let out a small chuckle before replying.

'Okay.'

He puts the scroll in his pocket and walks back to the door with Lien in his hand.

The twins looked at Ren as he approached.

"Here's 300Ⱡ. Consider it tip money for coming all the here." Ren said, handing them the Lien. Militia grabs it, brushing her hand against his. Her face flushed. Ren turned around to walk back inside, before Melanie grabbed his hand.

"Wait." She said.

"Something wrong?" Ren asked.

"Don't leave so soon handsome, can we get your name first?" Melanie asked.

"Melanie, we sh-shouldn't bother him any longer." Militia said shyly.

"Don't be ridiculous Militia."

From this, Ren could tell which twin was the shy one and which was the confident one. He needed to bail out of this fast.

"Ren, i-it's uh, it's Ren." Ren said.

"Hi Ren. Tell me, do you have a girlfriend?" Melanie said as she took a step closer.

"Um…. no I don't." Ren answered.

Melanie took another step closer.

"Would you like to get a drink with us some day?"

Immediately after asking that question, Fox grabbed Ren and pulled him inside.

"Hey." Melanie exclaimed.

"Sorry, um a problem just occurred that only Ren is able to fix. He'll get back to you soon." Fox said as he immediately closed the door.

"Thanks Fox." Ren said.

"No problem." Fox said. Soon footsteps began to walk away from the door.

"Militia, let's go."

"O-okay." Militia said. A few seconds later, a small piece of paper slid under the door. Ren picks it up and reads it.

It was Militia's number along with the words, _Call me ~ 3_. Ren puts it in his pocket.

"It'd be rude if I didn't keep it." Ren muttered to himself.

"Hey! Who broke the window?" Qrow asked.

"Sorry, that was me." Ren said as he put up his StormFlower.

"Retrieving StormFlower." Ren said.

"In what way? Jumping through the window?" Oscar asked.

"No I just stuck my arm out." Ren said. Confused looks all hit him. Ren realizes he never fully explained everything.

"Follow me." Ren said as he walked out to the railing. They followed him. Ren throws one of his StormFlowers a far distance before sticking his arm out. They watched as the StromFlower stopped, and began to spin back to Ren's hand. They were all amazed.

"Whoa! Ren! That was so cool! Can I try!?" She asked grabbing Ren's hand jumping up and down excitedly.

"Ruby that's not a good-"

"Please?" She asked with puppy eyes. Ren sighs and gave her the handle end of the gun.

She grabs it and upon her doing do, Ren let's go. The 'weight' of the single StormFlower brought her down and was entirely too much for Ruby to pick up. She tries to pick it up many times, but to no avail.

"This thing is heavy!" Ruby said as she tried with all her might. "What's this thing made of?"

"I tried to warn you." Ren said as he licked it up himself.

"How heavy is that thing?" Ruby asked. Ren could only shrug.

(())

Inside the room, Jaune was waking up from his drunken sleep.

"Oh, good, you're awake." Velvet said. Jaune smacked his lips and felt his throat dehydrated.

He dryly groans in the form of speech.

"Hmm, what was that?" Velvet asked.

"Water." He asked with a raspy voice. He tumbles off of the couch, gets up and runs to the kitchen.

He turns on the sink and sticks his mouth under the water and began drinking.

Qrow and Ren walked into the kitchen with arms folded.

"Hmph, lightweight." Ren said. Qrow picked that up.

"What?" Qrow asked.

"What?" Ren quickly followed up to cover what he said.

(())

"Well that's said and done." Night said as he retracted the claws back into his hand.

"I wonder what Ironwood is doing in Mistral, especially considering he sealed off the borders closed." Crimson said as some of his cards flew back into his hand.

"Maybe if we weren't finding who killed all those huntsmen, we'd be nose deep in this, but investigating all things Atlas is Smokey's thing." Night said.

"And Scar, don't forget about Scar. " Crimson mentioned.

"And Mr. Viex, now come on, we still have to investigate. We still have yet to find out how whoever killed them knew." Night explained.

"Bet you 300Ⱡ it was Lionheart." Crimson said.

"You're on." Night replied. The two fist bump and walk off.

(())

It had been five minutes since Emerald left on her individual mission.

Cinder paced back and forward as she thought of something to aid their fight.

Then a knock was on their door. Watts got up and walked towards the door. Upon opening it, he started talking.

"Mr Ari, I'm glad you were able to-" he stopped talking upon seeing who he was talking to.

He was not talking to Ari, but he spoke to a tall male with a white skin complexion. Black hair streaked with gray pulled back into a ponytail, a mustache and a goatee. He wore a black diagonally-buttoned, long-sleeved tailcoat that is white on the inside, with black and gold trimming and red cuffs. The trimming goes down the right side of his torso and forms a black collar.

On his back was a sword that was nine feet long. Making it three feet taller than him. His eyes were a dark shade of purple.

"Hello. I believe you need some help to take down a Rogue Yami no Tenshi." He said with a smirk.

A single feathered red wing appeared on his left side.

(())

 **More cliffhangers**. **Gotta love then.**

 **The voting ends at the next chapter, so vote now if you haven't already.**

 **Raven is winning, blah blah blah, humor chapters are up next and I'm out. Peace.**


	18. The lion snake

Chapter 17: The lion snake

Reese was walking along side Arslan as they made their way to where RWBY and Co. were staying. As they came across the room, they heard excited chatter on the other side.

"That is so cool! You're like Rai the Prince of Xouvis!" Nora's voice said.

"It's like you've got your own version of Labyrint! That's awesome!" Ruby's voice said.

"Someone fill me in, what did I miss?" Jaune's voice said. Reese knocked on the door whilst they were talking.

"I'll tell you what you missed."

Velvet opened the door for them.

"Renny here is worthy!" Nora said as she held up is arm like he won a championship. Ren looked at the girls as they entered the room. Ren sheepishly scratched his head.

"What's going on?" Arslan asked.

"I don't know, something about being worthy and being Rai or something." Velvet said.

"The god of Lightning from the Mirari comics?" Reese asked.

"Yea. I'm lost so I stopped listening 10 minutes ago." Velvet said.

"I wonder who else is worthy." Ruby asked. They all went silent and then looked at Ren. Ren saw where this was going.

(())

Penny, Winter and Ironwood were in a fuel station titled called Just Rite. Ironwood was outside helping repair Penny's arm. Winter looked at the title of the station and thought of something.

"You know, I don't know why, but that sign kind of reminds me of someone my sister made friends with. I think her name was Yang." Winter said.

"Yang?" Penny asked slightly confused.

"Something wrong Penny?" Ironwood asked.

"No, it's just… I feel like I should remember that name." Penny said. Winter looked at her with slight remorse. During their battle with the Lancers, Ironwood said that Penny's memories weren't able to be rebuilt along with her. She knew that Penny had friends, but the fact that she couldn't remember them was heartbreaking.

"Something wrong Winter?" Ironwood asked.

"Hmm, oh, um. No sure." Winter said.

Ironwood fixed Penny's arm finally.

"Okay, that should do it." Ironwood said.

"Thank you sir." Penny said. Ironwood smiled and ruffled her hair as he stood up. He then walks inside the station with Lien in his hand.

"Here you go." He said as he gave the clerk his money.

"Thanks." The clerk said. Ironwood walked back outside and gestured the two to walk with him. They obliged and followed him. On the rooftop of the station, Kim-Ly was monitoring them as they walked.

"Kobura is not gonna be happy to hear this." She said to herself.

(())

There was excited clamoring coming from the young hunters and huntresses, except Ren, who stayed his calm and quiet self, but he smiled in amusement as they crowded around his StormFlower as it was on a table with the handle sticking up. Weiss also stayed quiet as she wasn't as excited as the others.

"Come on sis, show us how you use those muscles." Ruby said as Yang grabbed the handle of the StormFlower. She pulled with all her might, but the StormFlower didn't bulge. She added her mechanical arm, but the result was indifferent. She gave up and walked off defeated.

Nora grabbed and pulled, placing one foot on the table for leverage. She tried very hard, but the StormFlower refused to move.

Ilia used the whip form of her weapon in an attempt to drag it. However, she wasn't going anywhere.

Fox and Oscar both hand their hands on a part of the StormFlower trying to lift it.

"Pull Pull Pull Pull Pull." Fox said as he strained.

"I'm trying." Oscar said. Their combined strength could not bulge the StormFlower.

"Oh, I gotta try this." Arslan said.

Qrow patted Ren on the shoulder to get his attention. Ren turns around and Qrow gives him a glass filled with a drink. One sniff immediately gave him the answer that it was alcohol.

"Sunset Rum. And yes, I'm aware you're a minor." Qrow said. Ren shrugged and took a sip, watching as the others tried to lift his StormFlower.

Arslan had her hands wrapped around the handle as she pulled. Upon pulling, her arms glew a dark red with her aura as she pulled. Upon the tactic not working, she stops pulling and released.

"This thing refuses to bulge." Arslan said.

"You try Jaune." Yang said.

"Uh no. If you guys couldn't lift it, I definitely won't be able to." Jaune said.

"Come on, you won't know until you try." Fox said as he gave Jaune a light push.

"Let's see what you got vomit boy." Yang said. Jaune rolled his eyes and walked towards the StormFlower.

"You can do it Jaune." Weiss cheered on. Jaune grabs the handle and with all his might, pulled on the StormFlower. The others were cheering for him.

Ren goes to take a sip, but before his lips touched the glass he saw his StormFlower move the slightest inch.

However, Jaune couldn't move it anymore. Due to fatigue, he stops.

"You did your best Jaune." Weiss said patting him on the back.

"Am I the only one that-"

" _Nope_." Ren's other self said.

"Alright Alright, kids. Step aside. I got this." Qrow said. Everyone stepped aside as Qrow made his way to the StormFlower. He grabs the handle and begins to pull. Obviously, the StormFlower didn't move.

After 20 seconds, he gave up.

"Wow, that thing weighs a lot. Maybe I need to start doing some more bicep curls." Qrow said as he rotated his shoulder.

"Or….." Ruby started as Ren walked over and picked his StormFlower up with ease.

"You're not worthy." Ruby said.

"If I'm not worthy, then neither are you." Qrow countered. Ruby stuck out her tongue.

"If you don't mind me asking, can you guys fill me in on what happened? I was kinda… well, you know." Jaune said. Ren opened his mouth to say something, but a growling stomach stopped him.

"Maybe over dinner." Ren said. The others laughed.

(())

The Thirteen hunters (Qrow, Ilia and Oscar included) were sitting at a table that had room for all of them. They were laughing and chatting as well.

"Wait, so you turned him into glass and then crushed his head?" Fox asked, astonished. Ren scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"That's what I've been told by Neo here. I don't even believe it myself." Ren said.

"That is like, the coolest thing I've ever heard." Reese said.

"You think that's cool? You should have seen him when we were in the citadel. Especially after Ilia got hurt? He went crazy!" Fox said. Most of them looked at Ren, Ilia looked off to the ground with a slight blush.

"Sorry, I lost my temper momentarily." Ren said.

"No dude, it was awesome. I wish I could see." Fox said.

"Ooooooh." Ren said before smiling. "Thank you."

"No Ren, thank you. You totally saved our behinds." Fox said.

"I second that." Ilia said.

"Well you seemed to improve in strength." Yang said, she places her robotic arm, ready to arm wrestle.

"Let's see how strong you are." She said. Ren was intrigued by this and decided to participate.

The two started to arm wrestle. Nora and Jaune cheered for Ren. Ruby cheered for Yang, Weiss was not amused by this.

"You can do it Ren!" Nora said.

"Show them what team JNPR's made of!" Nora said.

"Woohoo! Go Yang! You have no chance of winning but I'll cheer for you anyway!" Ruby said.

"Nice gauntlets, They make you look tougher." Yang said.

"Makes me feel stronger too. You might lose this." Ren said as he slowly began to overpower her.

"You know, this thing's got some pretty awesome features." Yang said. Ren gave a confused look before hearing a robot sound. Suddenly, Yang shot off her arm. Ren was nearly knocked back, but Ren managed to keep from hitting his arm on the wall.

Ren looked at Yang, then the arm. He pins the arm on the table.

"I win." Ren said. Yang went from smiling to wide eyed.

"What?! That counts?!" Yang exclaimed.

"Afraid so Yang, looks like Ren outmuscled and outsmarted you." Jaune said.

"Okay, I'll give you that." Yang said. Ren gave her back her arm. Jaune and Fox began to pick up the dishes.

"I am stuffed, we ate so much. I think I might be sick." Jaune said with a groan as he put the dishes in the sink.

"Easy vomit boy, we believe you." Yang said. Weiss and Ruby gave little giggles.

"Oh, nickname throwbacks, wonderful. Thanks Blondie." Jaune said. Yang rolled her eyes. Weiss giggled again.

"Ice queen seems to like it." Ruby said. Weiss stopped her giggling. Nora broke out in laughter, as did the others in the room.

"I so didn't miss you guys." Weiss sarcastically said.

"Someone's throwing stones in a glass house. Crater face." Ren said winking at Ruby. Ruby blushes from embarrassment.

"Wait, Crater face?" Ilia asked.

"What's the origin behind that?" Reese asked.

"She blew a hole in front of the school on her first day. Ren and I couldn't stop laughing when I told that story." Jaune said.

"How did you blow a hole in the school?" Arslan asked with a chuckle.

"Ice queen shook fire dust in my face and I sneezed." Ruby explained. Weiss simply rolled her eyes.

"Oh my gosh, she does like the name! What warmed your heart while you were gone?" Nora asked.

"Hey! You make it sound like I used to be terrible." Weiss said.

"No, just a lot to deal with." Ruby said.

"Hmph." Weiss exclaimed.

Ruby stuck out her tongue.

"They may not show it, but they really missed you snow angel." Jaune said. Weiss' cheeks turned red for a brief second.

"I won't lie, I did too. I'm glad we got to see each other for the time we did." Yang said reattaching her arm.

"It's good to see how we've progressed." Ren said.

"You all share such a strong bond. I'm happy for you." Arslan said.

"Hey, Ren. Can we talk now?" Yang asked. Ren nodded. Yang gave the follow me gesture, Ren followed her out of the room.

"So, what do you wanna talk about?" Ren asked. Yang leaned against the wall and smirked at Ren.

"So, do you remember meeting someone on the roof of the hotel about….. Two or three in the morning?" Yang asked. Ren's heart seemingly stopped.

"Um…. I… I-" Before Ren could finish, Yang put her hand up.

"I followed you there, so I saw everything." Yang said. Ren's forehead started to sweat.

"E-everything?"

"Yes, even my mother kissing you." Yang pointed out.

"It was an-"

"Accident? I know, like I said, I saw everything." Yang said. Ren let out a minor sigh of relief.

"You know, I admire you." Yang said. Ren was a bit caught off guard by this.

"Wait, what?" Ren asked.

"I admire you. You've been possessed by something that would've turned you into a monster. Yet, you put your own safety second, concerning the well being of your friends and those around you before your own." Yang said.

"Um…. thanks." Ren said. Yang smiled a little.

"No problem." Yang said. She looked at him and blushed a little. Luckily, Ren didn't not notice this.

"Is that all?" Ren asked.

" _No, kiss me you fool._ " Yang thought. "Um… y-yea. That's it."

"Okay, good talk." Ren said as he walked back in the room. Yang lightly hit her head on the wall.

"Everything okay Yang?" Blake's voice asked around the corner.

"Yea, everything is fine." Yang played off.

(())

Back in the room, the sun was finally starting to set. Everyone was going back to their rooms except Ilia, who didn't have a room.

"That was great, I'll see you guys again soon. Arslan said. Reese walked a good distance away before turning around and blowing Ren a kiss.

Ren gave a slight smirk and acted as if he caught it. Ruby and Nora gave Reese a death glare.

Ren walked back into the room, and Lotus was on the couch, being belly rubbed by Ilia.

"Today was a pretty good day, I'll admit." Jaune said.

"You mean besides you being super drunk?" Qrow asked. Jaune let out a small groan.

"Please, don't bring that up." Jaune pleaded.

"Okay, I won't but next time, invite me." Qrow joked. Jaune rolled his eyes at this.

"I would get my rest Mr. Arc, You have a lot of training to do." Ozpin said. Jaune looked at him slightly confused.

"Oscar gave Ozpin temporary control." Ren said.

"Oh, okay." Jaune said. Ruby then looked at Ilia.

"So…. Ilia, where will you be going?" She asked. Ilia went quiet for a moment.

"I guess I could go book a room." Ilia said.

"Don't worry, you can sleep in my bed." Ren said.

"WHAT!?" Ruby and Nora exclaimed.

"Really?" Ilia said.

"Sure, I can get the couch." Ren said. Neo gave Ren a light kick in leg, getting his attention.

Nearly everyone forgot she was there.

"(What about me?!)" She angrily sighed.

"Oh, right. Well, you can get the couch and I'll sleep on the floor." Ren said. A silence filled the room for a second before Ren spoke up again. "Um…. anyone got a sleeping bag?" Ren asked.

(())

Nighttime had struck. Everyone was sleeping soundly. Ren had gotten a sleeping bag and Lotus was acting as Ren's pillow. As the clock struck 4 am, Ren woke up against his will and was unable to go back to sleep. He groans and walks towards the balcony. He looked at the city as he leaned against the stone railing.

"Hey, are you there?" Ren spoke to his other self.

" _Yes. Do you require my assistance?"_ Other Ren asked.

"Do you have a cure for boredom and early wake up regret?" Ren asked.

" _I do not_." Other Ren replied.

"Well that sucks." Ren said as he slouched over the railing. Then he got an idea. "Hey, I remember you telling me that I had Outer Body sight. Correct?" Ren asked.

" _Correct._ " Other Ren replied.

"Is that something I have control over or…." Ren asked.

" _Unfortunately, no. But, you can communicate with me and navigate where you want me to go._ "

"Alright." Ren said. He sat in his meditation position. He closed his eyes, and almost immediately, he was able to see himself sitting down.

"Is this how it works?" Ren asked.

" _Yes. Where do you wish for me to go?_ " Other Ren asked.

"Go to Lionheart's office. I need to see what he is up to." Ren said. Other Ren began to walk off. He walks through the door, being a spirit technically, he didn't need to open the door.

"Hey, do you have a name?" Ren asked.

" _I'm a possessor of a subconscious, we do not have names._ " Other Ren said.

"Well, I don't think it's a good idea for me to talk to you without you having a name." Ren said.

" _If you would feel more comfortable with giving me a name, I won't stop you._ " Other Ren said. Ren thought for a moment.

"Does Longwei sound okay?" Ren asked. A moment of silence hits them. Other Ren smirked.

" _Sounds good. I'll take it._ " Longwei said. He spread his wings and flew upwards, phasing through the floors. He makes it to Lionhearts office using this intangibility.

Lionheart was talking to a seer grimm, giving Ren the impression that it was used for communication.

"Get behind him. I need to see who he's talking to." Ren said. Longwei walked behind Lionheart to look into the seer grimm. He was talking to Cinder, Mercury, Watts, and a man with a red wing.

"Son of a-" Ren started before Lionheart started talking.

"So you plan to use mr….. What's your name again?" Lionheart asked.

"Rai, Kuro Rai." The man said.

"The Yī Uingudo. You plan on using him to retrieve the spring maiden and the rogue Yami no Tenshi. Correct?" Lionheart asked.

"Correct." Cinder said.

"What's in it for him?" Lionheart asked, both intrigued and cautious.

"What I want will come soon enough. You have the rogue Yami no Tenshi, the Silver eyed girl, and knowledge of the spring maiden." Kuro said.

"What would he want with me?" Ren asked.

"Oh, you'll find out soon enough." Kuro said as he turned his attention to Longwei.

"Wait, he can see me?!" Ren asked. Lionheart looked over his shoulder, not seeing anyone and looked back at Kuro.

"Who are you talking to?" Lionheart asked.

"Afraid that is information yet to be revealed. But make sure you keep an eye on that rogue." Kuro said, not taking his eyes off of Longwei. "He's a lot craftier than you think."

(())

A portal opens next to Ren's meditating body. Raven walks through the portal, with Vernal. They looked and saw Ren in his meditation position. They looked at each other, then back at Ren.

(())

"Maybe with Mr. Rai, Raven will give you the spring maiden. And the next step of retrieving the second half of the relic will be complete." Lionheart said.

Ren listened to this and he was very upset from what was being heard. He was right to suspect that Lionheart was a snake. But now he needed a way to tell the others, and have evidence to back it up. But how?

"Have them come to the school grounds. If we can persuade Raven to lend us the spring maiden, we can get the upper hand." Kuro said.

"We've tried alre-" Mercury tried to speak.

"She'll listen to me, I guarantee that." Kuro said. Before anything else happened, Kuro looked at Longwei and suddenly Ren's head started hurting, forcing him to wake up.

(())

Ren woke up clenching his head in pain.

"GAH! What did he do to me?" Ren asked.

" _Non-Physical mental attack. He hit you with one._ " Longwei said.

"It worked. I need an ice pack now." Ren said. A few seconds later, a hand gave him an ice pack. He grabs it.

"Thanks." Ren said, he soon realized a random hand gave him something. He quickly jumped up and turned around.

"What the-" Ren said.

"Relax pretty boy, it's just us." Vernal said. Ren let out a slight sigh of relief.

"Sorry, to cut in on…. Well, whatever you were doing. But, Vernal and I came to check and see how you were doing." Raven said.

"I appreciate your concern, but we have some big trouble. Lionheart's a snake. I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt when you told me, but he was just talking Cinder and her group." Ren said. Vernal and Raven looked at each other then back at Ren.

"Just talking to them? How do you know this?" Vernal asked.

"One of my Yami no Tenshi abilities allows Outer Body Sight. I used it to spy on Lionheart. And we have some pretty bad news." Ren started. Raven looked around.

"We can't talk here, follow me." Raven said. She walks towards the door and Ren and Vernal follow her.

She opens the door and leads the way out.

"Where are we headed?" Ren asked.

"Somewhere we can talk, without being watched." Vernal answered. Ren sighes, is it technically did and didn't answer his question.

"Just have me back before the sunrise, I don't want my team worrying again." Ren said. Raven rolled her eyes.

"Sure thing kid." Raven said.

(())

Mercury paced a little back and forwarth. He had a hard time trusting Kuro Rai, but he currently felt like he had no choice.

"Okay, Mr. Rai. You said that you will help us, in return you get the Rogue Yami no Tenshi, correct?" Cinder asked. Rai nodded, but then Watts spoke up.

"I'm afraid that Salem-"

"Wants the Rogue for herself. However, if you would like my help, you will give him to me." Kuro said.

"What if she doesn't want to give the Rogue to you?" Cinder asked.

"I'll take him. One way or another." Kuro said. None of them liked the way he said that.

"Alright Mr. Rai. You have a deal." Cinder said as she offered a handshake. Kuro looked at her, then her hand and shook it.

"Deal." Kuro said.

(())

 **And done. For the second time, a chapter didn't take till the end of the month.**

 **The voting ends on this chapter and the winner is… Raven Branwen.**

 **Obviously, the story is named after her and Ren.**

 **The top three runner-ups are**

 **Blake and Yang: 8**

 **Neo and Ruby: 7**

 **Ilia: 6**

 **And**

 **Coco: 3**

 **Anyways. The next chapters will be for humor, and I'll try my best with that. I will also try to include some lore. And with that…. I'm out!**


	19. Fuel to the fire

Chapter 18: Fuel to the fire

Ren and Vernal followed behind Raven as she lead them to a bar like area in the lower part of Mistral. This was the much more shadier area of the city much more occupied by bandits. Even worse, it was raining.

As they walked towards the bar, there was a sign in Tsubakenese.

フリークは許されない.

Underneath it, showed a picture of a faunus silhouette with a circle and red slash over it.

"Well that's comforting." Ren said sarcastically.

"What's it say? I never did understand Kanji." Vernal asked.

"Freaks are not allowed." Ren translated. Vernal nodded in understanding.

"Now kid, this isn't a friendly place. Just warning you now. They sense any weakness from you, you're out of here. Got it?" Raven asked.

"Understood." Ren said. Raven nodded and proceeded to open the door.

As they walked into the bar, they were looked upon by the occupants and the bartender. This made Ren feel very uncomfortable. Raven lead them to a table. Ren sat on the opposite side as Raven and Vernal. A bar waitress walks towards them.

"Bottom shelf. I'm sure he won't mind." Raven said giving her the Lien. She nods and walked away. Ren observed the shady people in the bar. Some were even glaring at him. After a few seconds, the waitress comes back with double shots glasses. She places them on the table and gave them their specific drinks. Raven recognized that one of the drinks given to Ren was from the top shelf.

"I know she said that you wouldn't mind bottom shelf." She said as she gave him the drink.

"But I went ahead and gave you top." She said adding a wink. "Lucky you." She said as she walked away. Vernal looked at Ren with a raised eyebrow and a smirk.

"Well, you're just a regular ladies man aren't you." Vernal said.

"Thank you." Ren said with a smirk.

"So, what bad news did you hear?" Raven asked.

"There's some guy that is helping Cinder and her group get to Spring and Ruby. I think his name was Kuro. He was a Yī Uingudo. They also said-"

"Wait…. Did you just say Yī Uingudo?" Vernal said as Raven was just as surprised as her.

"One winged. Yes. You know about them?" Ren asked.

"I've had one encounter with them and let's just say things didn't go so well, and now one of them is helping Cinder. It's only a matter of time before she can get the other part of the relic." Raven said.

"I need to tell the others about Lionheart, but I know for a fact they won't believe me." Ren said.

"What makes you say that?" Raven asked.

"It's pretty much the cliche. I know the truth, I've got no evidence, they won't believe me. It happens all the time." Ren said.

"We can get evidence if you need it, but your friends trust you. I know they do." Raven said. This kind of optimism was a surprise to Ren. He decided not to point this out though.

"Yea, but just might." Ren said. He took another swing. Vernal looked at the gauntlets he had on and got an idea to destroy the silence.

"Where'd you get those gauntlets?" Vernal asked. Ren looked at his gauntlets.

"An officer told me some girl gave these to me. Why?" Ren asked.

"I feel like I've seen them before. On you, they look like-"

"You're a little bitch." One of the shady people in the bar said. Ren simply raised an eyebrow. The man was 6'4" and was wearing clothes that made him resemble one of Raven's bandits. The only difference being instead of Red and black, it was green and yellow.

"Excuse me?" Ren asked.

"You heard me." The man said as he stood up and walked towards him.

"Get out of my bar before I replace those gauntlets with casts." He said. Raven looked at Ren with a mix of curiosity and concern.

After a slight moment of silence, Ren finishes his drink. He stands up and clears his throat.

"Okay." He said. Raven and Vernal go wide eyed and then facepalmed.

"But I can't leave just yet. You have something on your shirt." Ren said as he put the tips of his fingers on the man's chest. The man attempts to look down, but before he could, Ren hits him with a one inch punch, which sent him flying across the bar. He hits a table and is knocked out.

Raven looked up right as this happened and smirked.

Ren grabs the empty glass and spins it in the air. As he grabbed it again, he looked around the bar.

"Anyone else?" Ren asked. Someone who was wearing similar attire stood up. Ren throws the glass at him.

(())

Winter, Ironwood, and Penny walked into the the lower area of Mistral. Winter had an umbrella with Penny as Ironwood walked in the rain.

"Where are we?" Winter asked.

"Sakura. A.k.a, the lower part of Mistral. Very sketchy area. Don't let your guard down, they will attempt to rob you, kidnap you and hold you for ransom." Ironwood said. Penny stopped for a brief second.

"Something wrong Penny?" Winter asked.

"My sensors are detecting intense levels of hostility within this area." Penny said. The very second she said that, a man in green and yellow was thrown out of a window of a bar. Ironwood looks at him, and then the bar window.

"That where it's coming from?" Ironwood asked.

"Yessir." Penny answered. The man let out a groan. Penny looks at him for a brief moment before being distracted by the thuds and punches in the bar. She, Winter and Ironwood peek inside through.

(())

Ren kicks a man in the shin, then the knee causing the man to kneel. He grabs the man's head and slams it into a table knocking him out.

A woman, again wearing the same attire, throws a glass at Ren. Ren dodges it and it hits one of the men that was standing back up, knocking him back down. Ren looks at her and puts his hand up as if telling her to stop.

"You might wanna think about your next move." Ren warned. The woman froze for a second, looked at the knocked out men, and then back at Ren. She made up her mind and ran towards him.

Vernal stuck out her leg, causing her to trip and hit her head on a chair. She is stunned as she is on the ground and attempts to get up. Raven, who was standing up, kicks her in the face, knocking her out cold. Ren looked at the knocked out assailants. There was 8 of them. 9 counting the guy he threw out the window. One thing Ren noticed, they all wore the same clothing.

The waitress looked up from behind a desk shaking from fear.

"Sorry about the damage." Ren said as he scratched his head.

"I-it's okay. Don't worry about it." The waitress said.

Raven looked at Ren with a smirk.

"I've gotta stop underestimating you kid." Raven said.

"Starting a bar fight isn't a normal for you?" Ren chuckles. Raven chuckles with him. Ironwood walks into the bar, and Ren looks at him.

"General Ironwood?" Ren questioned. Raven and Vernal look at him as Winter and Penny walked in after him.

"What happened in here?" Winter asked as he looked at the unconscious thugs.

"What are you doing here? Didn't you close off the borders?" Vernal glared.

"We have our reasons to be here. However, it is none of your business." Winter said.

"It's also none of your business to be here Schnee." Vernal leered. Winter grimaced before composing herself.

"I won't stoop to the petty levels of a bandit, but I will advise that you choose your next words very carefully." Winter said. Ren let out an 'uh oh' knowing this was probably gonna end badly.

"Or what? You'll call daddy on me?" Vernal said as she smirked. Winter was about to reach for her sword.

"Hold your tongue bandit, or else I will remove it." Winter threatened.

"Schnee!" Ironwood said. Winter immediately stops and composes herself, however, her glare never left.

Vernal was about to say something else, but Raven spoke before she could open her mouth.

"Vernal! That's enough." Raven said. Vernal shuts her mouth as Raven looked at Ironwood with a disapproving look.

"So, you close off the borders. Recalled your tin cans and little troops and then you cross the borders yourself? Whatever is here must be very important if you're willing to break your own rule." Raven said as she folded her arms.

"I don't have time for any of your mess Branwen." Ironwood said. Ren wasn't surprised that Raven knew Ironwood, but the same couldn't be said for the other way around.

"Well, how about you explain what your business is here?" Raven asked, her disapproving glare not moving.

"That's hardly any of your-" Winter started before Ironwood put up his hand to signal her to stop talking.

"We have cut the ties with the schnee dust company. Disavowed Frozen Forest, and we need to talk to Lionheart." Ironwood explained.

"Wait, you cut off your own dust supplier?" Raven asked.

"Smart choice if you ask me." Vernal commented.

"Vernal!" Raven said. Vernal stopped talking and looked away.

Ren said nothing, but listened closely. Penny stood next to him and tilted her head as she observed him.

"Why would you do that?" Raven asked, definitely curious.

"That is none of your concern. We need to discuss things with Lionheart and that's all you are gonna hear." Ironwood said.

"You specialists and your secrecy really do get on my nerves. Cut the secrecy and tell me why you really are here." Raven said. As they were conversating, Ren noticed that Penny was observing him.

"Um…. Are you okay?" Ren asked.

"I am feeling well. Thank you for asking." Penny said with a smile. Ren gave a small smile.

"Hmm…." Penny said out loud.

"Is something wrong?" Ren asked.

"You have the physical appearance of….. Cute." She said. Ren went slightly wide eyed and pink faced.

"I'm what now?" Ren asked.

"Cute. And handsome. Those are descriptions of your physical appearance." Penny shamelessly said.

"Um….. Thank you. You are cute too." Ren said slightly awkwardly.

"I appreciate your gratitude." Penny said with a smile. Ren looked at his scroll and saw the time.

"Hey, I gotta go. I'll see you soon." Ren said.

"Wait, what is your name?" Penny asked. Ren went quiet for a minute.

"Lie Ren." Ren introduced holding out his hand.

"Penny Polendina." Penny introduced as she shook his hand. Ren recognized that name, and her appearance.

"Penny, do you remember Ruby Rose?" Ren asked. Penny tilted her head as if she was trying to remember.

"I….. I feel like I should. But no, is she someone I should know?" Penny asked.

"She used to be your friend. Back before the fall of Beacon. Before the world shook and became riddled with fear. You and her were close." Ren said. Penny went quiet for a moment. Ren knew what this meant and sighed.

"Listen, I have to go now. Do me a favor, try to remember. Ruby will really appreciate it if you do." Ren said. Penny nods and Ren walks away. As he walked out the door, Ren grew his wings and flew off.

Penny watched as he flew off. She looked at herself and tilted her head.

"Ruby?" She said.

(())

Cinder, and Mercury were still in the ship as Watts was out to do recon and see when Raven returned.

Mercury was very suspicious about Kuro and didn't take his eyes off of him.

"You know, if you take a picture, it'll last longer." Kuro said. Mercury frowned.

"Why are you here?" Mercury asked. Kuro looked at Mercury, sticks his sword in the ground and walks towards him. Mercury took a step back, but Kuro was now close to him and in his face.

"Tell me. Do you know what the Rens have done?" Kuro asked. Mercury went quiet.

"Do you know?" He asked.

A moment of silence hits them. Kuro pulls out a dagger that was similar to the one Ren had, only difference was it was red.

"I found my father with a dagger wound in his chest. By the hands of Li Ren. If it wasn't for him, and that worthless Bandit Raven, I'd still have my family." Kuro said. His appearance changed. As if it was glass, his appearance changed in to someone much younger. Mercury's eyes widened as he saw a new person.

He had no goatee, no mustache, and he had green eyes.

"My father uncovered some secrets that Li wanted to remain hidden from the world. Ancestral magic. He uncovered the secrets, and Ren killed him off. Now he needs to pay the price." Kuro said. Cinder had to remember what Salem told her about the Ren's. One thing she knew was that Lie Ren's father was deceased.

"How are you gonna get your vengeance if-"

"Li Ren is dead? Na. He's not dead. Not yet." Kuro said, he then chuckled. "But, that's only for you to see."

Watts comes back into the ship.

"Now is a good time to head back." Watts said. Kuro smirked and deactivated his wing and reactivated his older looking disguise.

"Time for you to see how persuasive the Yī Uingudo can be." Kuro said. He walked towards the door.

(())

Ren flies onto the balcony and makes his wings disappear. He rubbed his back as it did slightly hurt him.

"I'm gonna get used to that one of these days." Ren said. As he walked back into the room, where Lotus happily pounced on him.

"Have a good expedition?" Oscar in Ozpin's voice asked. Ren jumped a little and looked at the couch to see Ozcar taking a sip of coffee.

"Um…. I guess?" Ren answered.

"I see you and Raven are becoming quite close." Ozcar said. Ren scratched her head slightly embarrassed.

"I wouldn't know about that, but-"

"What do you know about her?" Ozcar asked. Ren went silent for a moment.

"She's a bandit. She's Yang's mother and she knows about the Yami no Tenshi and the Yī Uingudo. And she knew my father." Ren stated. Ozcar rubbed his chin with a hmm.

"She hasn't told you yet." Ozcar said. Ren raised an eyebrow.

"Told me what?" Ren said.

"Take a seat, you'll need it, believe me." Ozcar said. Ren gulped.

(())

 **Hmm….. It seems that Raven has some secrets that Ren might not be too happy to here. I wonder what you guys think it could be.**

 **By all means, if you have a theory, let me know.**

 **Also, More, harem chapters will happen.**

 **Please leave a review, and I'm out.**


	20. The truth

Chapter 19: The truth

Ren and Ozcar Sat down onto the couch, that Neo was no longer sitting at.

Ren noticed, but at the moment, he was concentrated on what Ozcar was getting ready to tell him.

Ilia woke up and stretched as she got out of the bed. She checks her scroll and sees that she had a text from Adam.

'Ilia? Are you there?'

'I am here. Is something wrong?'

'I have been informed of a creature of immense power known as a Yami no Tenshi. It currently populates your area.'

'Roger that sir, I will be on the lookout.' Ilia texted. Adam gave an understood text and went offline. Ilia sat at the foot bed and started to think about what to do. Should she maintain her cover and leave? Or should she just go AWOL from the White Fang? Either way, it was a risk of getting her, and Ren, in danger. She wasn't sure which one was the bigger risk.

She gets up and walks to the door leading to the living room. She needed to talk to Ren about this.

(())

"Before I began, I must ask you, what do you think of Raven?" Ozcar asked. Ren paused for a moment.

"She's enigmatic. She hides a lot of secrets from me. But, she returns the favor when in debt." Ren said. Ilia was walking into the room, but at the doorway she stopped.

"Is that all?" Ozcar asked.

"I also know that she can turn into a Raven, like how Qrow can turn into a crow." Ren said.

"Hmm, you seemed to figure that out a lot faster than I suspected. And what secrets do you suspect she is hiding from you?" Ozcar asked. This was the tricky part for Ren. So many things have happened that his memory was fading away from him, but there was one thing that Ren had in his head for a while.

"She knew my father." Ren said. Ozcar sort of froze.

"What did she tell you?" He asked.

"She said she made a deal with my father to get rid of Kobura, but was killed before anything could happen." Ren said.

Ilia felt like walking into the room and giving Ren a hug upon hearing that.

She really had no idea Ren lost his parents like she did. Sure, she lost hers in a different way, but the feeling was still the same.

"So…. she wasn't entirely cryptic." Ozcar said. Ren was slightly taken by surprise, but remained quiet in order to listen. "Well, you seem to know more than I thought Raven would let on. But, there are some things she wanted to keep from you."

Ren let out a sigh and gave a nod.

"I don't know how to put this, so I'll just start at the beginning."

Ilia slightly peeked into the room as she listened in on the conversation. Hoping she wouldn't be seen by Ozcar or Ren.

"Around a decade ago, Raven was in Kuroyuri. She and Li Ren, your father, were in fact discussing how to get rid of the Black Claw, as well as Kobura. However, things were a lot more complex than that." Ozcar started. "Your father was attempting to keep a secret from reaching the surface of Remnant. The use of Ancestral magic."

Ren wanted to say something, but he wanted to get everything that needed to be said before saying anything. But the shocked breath he held before releasing still came out.

"From your reaction, I know you are shocked, but yes. Li wanted no one to find out how to utilize this hidden sorcery. So he sealed the knowledge away in two blades, one in which he gave to his brother. Hong Ren."

Ren was taken completely taken by surprise. He was never aware that his Father had a brother. An uncle he never met. However, he kept his composure.

"But, Hong was… persistent." Ozcar said. Ren could tell where this was going, and he didn't like it. "He wanted to unlock the secrets. So, he searched for a way to unseal the knowledge and managed to find a way before-" Ozcar stopped talking. Ren looked at him.

"Before what?" Ren asked. Ozcar remained silent.

"Ozpin?" He called. "OZPIN!" He shouted, his voice slightly turning demonic.

Ozcar snapped out of it, and Ilia flinched from the doorway. Ren succeeded in recomposing himself.

"Sorry, I-"

"It's find, I was just…. Having a hard time finding the right-"

"Then don't. Just tell me." Ren said. He was calm, but the aggression was still in his voice. A silence fell between them.

"Hong managed to find a way to unseal the knowledge, but Raven caught him in the act. Li came to confront him. Things turned violent." Ozcar said. Ren was imagining everything in his head. Everything he heard, images played rapidly. He couldn't believe what he had just heard.

"Hong wanted Raven dead, so he attacked her. And Li…. Li took the life of his own brother to save Raven." Ozcar finished explaining. Ren was stunned, and shocked. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. Ancestral magic? Dead uncle?

"This can't be true. It can't." Ren said, trying to keep his voice from raising, so not to wake the others up.

" _I'm afraid it is Ren."_ Longwei said. " _Close your eyes_."

Ren did so and found himself standing in a memory with Longwei. He watches his father attempt to walk away, but Hong grabs a sword and attempts to attack Raven, only for Li to interrupt the distance and stab him in the torso. With the very dagger Ren carried right now.

Ren opened his eyes with slight despair before looking back at Ozcar.

"What….. What else is she hiding from me?" Ren asked. Ozcar once again went silent before speaking up.

Ruby had woken up and walked towards the door Ilia was listening through. She stayed quiet and peeked into the room as well.

"Raven went off the grid after that, but from what Qrow has told me a few years later, Raven and her bandits robbed a village called Kiku. Some of the villagers survived, but they ran to a nearby village for help. And they brought their fear with them. It wasn't long until the Grimm found them there too."

Ren just had to ask. He had to. He couldn't be 100% sure until he did, he knew it couldn't be true, but his doubts were unjustified.

"What village was this? What village did they go to?" Ren asked. His voice slightly choked up, and a tear falling down his eye.

"Kuroyuri." Ozcar finally said. Ren felt like a truck just hit him. He sat there in silence, tears flowing down his eyes. He felt betrayed that Raven never told him this. But, he only had himself to blame for never asking. This was still a lot to take in.

"Ren? Are you-" Oscar's voice asked. Oscar had regained control over his body. He heard everything and wanted to comfort him, but Ren stood up before he could finish.

"I need a minute." He said as he walked out to the balcony. Lotus had woken up prior to the conversation and walked out with him.

Ilia and Ruby finally walked around the corner. Ilia was gonna walk forward, but Ruby grabbed her arm.

"Give him a moment. We can talk to him later." Ruby said. Ilia for some strange reason trusted her and nodded.

(())

Kim Ly and Marc made it back to the village of the Barren wasteland in order to find Kobura.

Kobura seemingly appeared out of a black mist as he walked into view.

"I'm guessing the meeting went well?" Marc asked.

"They will talk to their superiors. They will have an answer in the next 5 days." Kobura answered.

"Well, we might not have 5 days. General Ironwood and winter schnee have just entered Mistral." Kim-Ly said.

"Them being here could ruin everything Kobura. Salem's crew are also gonna be moving in to grab the relic and the Rogue Tatsu soon." Marc said. Kobura seemingly went silent.

"Kim, go see if Shiroi and Kōri are ready. We will take them to retrieve the Rogue." Kobura said.

"Consider it done." Kim-Ly said. She and Marc both walked out. Rajak emerges from the Black mist as well.

"Did they mention the Yī Uingudo?" Rajak asked.

"No, they did not." Kobura said.

(())

Raven and Vernal arrived back at the tribe and were slightly worn out.

Only a few seconds after putting her Ōdachi scabbard down, Dawn ran into the tent.

"Ma'am! We have a problem." He said. Raven let out a small groan. She picks the scabbard back up, puts on her mask and walks out of the tent.

Upon doing so, she sees a man with a red wing on his left side, Cinder, a man she didn't know, and Mercury. The man with the wing made her go wide eyed.

"Hello there pretty bird." Rai said.

(())

 **Boomhilda! Ended.**

 **Time is short so I need to end this. Sorry for the inconvenience. But, I'll try to add more humor and Harem moments.**

 **I hope you all enjoyed this relatively short chapter, and with that I'm out.**


	21. Alliance Formation

Chapter 20: Alliance Formation

Lie Ren stood at the balcony as tears flowed down his cheeks. He felt like he was hit by an arrow that had caught fire. He was sad, angry, and in deep thought.

Lotus was worried and attempted to comfort Ren by rubbing his head against his leg.

Ren was immune to this tactic and was still staring forward for a few minutes.

He looks down at Lotus and sighed. He kneeled down and rubbed Lotus's head.

"I'm sorry I worried you Lotus. I just….. I thought I could trust her." Ren said. Lotus tilted his head as Ren's petting stopped.

"I know, I should have asked her. I should have. I should have asked her to explain in full detail who she knew about the death of my parents, but I didn't." Ren said as he paced back and forward.

"My father, he saves her life and Raven got him killed. Why? Why did I believe I could trust her?" Ren said. Lotus whimpered a little, getting Ren's attention. Ren lets out a sigh and kneels down.

Lotus walked towards him and Ren rubbed his side and head.

"I'll make things right." Ren said. His wings formed on his back and he walked to the edge of the balcony. Lotus let out a short howl.

"Sure, come on." Ren said. Lotus walked toward him and Ren picked him up.

Ren flapped his wings and flew off the balcony.

(())

"If I'm not mistaking, I don't remember inviting guests, so either I'm losing my memory, or (raising her voice) You've all lost your spines!" Raven said with slight aggression in her voice.

"No one is stupid enough to go up against a Yī Uingudo and a fall maiden, but then again, this is a Bandit camp." Kuro said.

"Leave us, pack your things, then break down the camp. We're moving." Raven addressed to the bandits. The bandits leave to do so.

"Little late to run and hide. You've been on our master's list for quite some time, so you must understand we can not just allow you to slip away." Watts said.

"Correction, they cannot allow you to slip away. I on the other hand, am here for a different reason. I want the Yami no Tenshi." Kuro said.

"Short and to the point. I give my gratitude for not wasting my time. However, you're just wasting yours, because-"

"Cut the bullshit Raven. I know that you know. The rogue Yami no Tenshi that helped you fight off the maiden and her associates. I want him." Kuro said. Raven said nothing and seemingly glared at him.

"We have a more…. Reasonable demand." Watts said.

"The spring Maiden." Cinder said. "Now there's no need to lie. We know you have her. So do yourself the justice of bringing her out." Cinder activates her Maiden power again and holds out a small flame in her right hand, grinning evilly.

"Vernal!" Raven called out.

Vernal steps out of Raven's tent and walks up next to her.

"I'm having a hard time believing that this is the Spring maiden. I'm gonna need proof." Cinder said. She remembered when she fought Vernal before, and she only used her maiden's power once and that was a lightning bolt.

Raven and Vernal share a glance with each other, with Raven nodding. Vernal sighs and closes her eyes. She holds her hands out and suddenly, the wind starts to pick up gradually. The blue sky turns to gray as clouds cover it. Leaves blow in the wind. Watts, Mercury and Emerald cover their faces as thunder is heard, while Cinder smiles in amazement as she watches the Spring Maiden unleash her power. Vernal then lowers her hands and opens her eyes as her powers settle.

"Well, someone's been practicing since our last encounter." Cinder taunted. Vernal gritted her teeth.

"Now, Ms. Branwen, I'm going to warn you know, There is a slim chance you and your Maiden could escape today, but if you know our master as well as you claim to, then you know you could never truly escape her. But we come bearing an olive branch." Raven said. Watts started to walk towards Raven.

"The Maidens are merely a means to an end. Salem's true desires are the Relics locked inside the Huntsman Academies. Come with us. Allow Vernal here to unlock the Relic of Knowledge, and all previous acts of defiance against Salem will be forgiven." Watts explained before walking towards Raven and whispered. "It's the best deal either of you are going to get."

Watts walked back to his group.

"You talk as if walking into Haven is gonna be easy." Raven said.

"It is gonna be easy. The cowardly lion from what I've heard, has been working with Salem and has turned his back on Ozpin." Kuro said.

"Something the two of you share in common." Cinder said, resulting in Raven grabbing the hilt of her sword.

"I'm not helping Salem, I'm not helping Oz! I don't want a part in any of this!" Raven exclaimed.

"That ship sailed when you chose to harbor a Maiden. But if you come with us to Haven, we'll leave you, your tribe, and your little secret to live out the rest of your lives squabbling in the wilderness. We just... need... the Relic." Cinder said.

"Correction, they need the relic. I need that Rogue Tatsu." Kuro said.

"They're are plenty of Rogue Tatsu for you to hunt down." Raven said.

"But only one of them has the last name, Ren." Kuro said. Raven gritted her teeth before letting out a sigh.

"Fine. I need time to think this over." Raven said.

"You don't have time. In two days, Haven Academy will be destroyed by the White Fang. You're going to choose now." Watts said.

"We've got you backed into a corner pretty bird. Will you choose to fight back, or fight with?" Kuro said.

After a tense moment, Raven removes her grip from her hilt and takes her mask off.

"Agreements like these are built on trust. And forgive me for saying, but I don't trust a single one of you. You're going to need to give me more." Raven said.

"And what position do you think you are in a to negotiate?" Kuro asked.

"I want my brother dead." Raven said.

"Qrow?" Mercury asked.

"That's right. He knows I have Spring. And if I help you get your Relic, he's going to become a problem. I have enough problems to deal with. Qrow doesn't trust me, but he does trust Ozpin's other lieutenants. If Leo really is loyal to you, then you can order him to invite Qrow into an ambush. He arrives at Haven, we take him down, you get your Relic, and we all leave happy." Raven said.

"Considering that your brother also holds Ren-"

"And Ruby." Mercury said, interrupting Kuro.

"This is a proposition I can get behind. I'm killing two birds with one stone." Kuro said. "But, if I know Salem, I know she wouldn't want to draw attention and leave a bloody mess."

"Then we wait. We wait until the full moon. Leo invites Qrow and his little fighters to Haven the same night Hazel and Adam arrive with the White Fang. As soon as the battle is won, the White Fang demolishes Haven, and any evidence we may have left behind is lost along with the school." Cinder said.

"Then, Salem leaves my people alone. For good." Raven said.

"You have yourself a deal." Kuro said.

Cinder holds her hand out to shake with Raven's, but Watts suddenly grabs her wrist.

"Wait. Don't think I don't see what you're after. If this falls to pieces over your grudge with a child, I will not be taking the blame." Watts said with a disapproving look. Cinder glared at him.

"Then what are you worried about?"

Cinder activates her Maiden powers and burns Watts' hand, causing him to remove his grip and hold his hand in pain.

"Fly back home and tinker with your machines." She holds her hand out again in front of Raven. "And tell Salem she'll get what she wants - and more."

Raven stands still for a moment, glaring at Cinder's hand in front of her, but then offers her own hand out and shakes it with the Fall Maiden, sealing the deal.

The group smiles before making their departure.

Raven sighed and walked back into the tent.

(())

"Well, that went surprisingly well." Mercury said.

"Don't get comfortable, he was watching us." Kuro said.

"Who was?" Mercury asked.

"The Lotus known as Ren."

(())

Ren was sitting in a nearby tree that overlooked the bandit's base. He had his eyes closed as he was using his Outer body sight in order to spy on the camp. He saw and heard everything. Lotus was at the foot of the tree, sitting and waiting for Ren.

He jumps from the tree and began to make his way out of the forest. Disregarding his original plan to talk to Raven.

One of Raven's Bandits, guarding the outskirts of the camp, saw Ren and walked up on him, pulling out his gun.

"Alright pretty boy. Put your hands-" He was interrupted by Ren moving his pistol hand and grabbing his head before slamming it into a tree. The collision of the tree to his head was so powerful that it knocked the tree down.

Somehow surviving the blow, the man woke up to see Ren picking up his pistol before crushing it.

"When you wake up, Tell Raven she knows how to find me." Ren said. Before the man could say anything else, Ren brought his foot up and the last thing the man saw was the bottom of Ren's shoe.

(())

Haven had been hit with a heavy rainstorm. Ren walked passed a shop that Emerald was in. Emerald noticed him and watched as he walked off.

His face was one of neutral anger. As if he was calming down from a previous aggravating event.

She didn't know whether to talk to him or to let him walk away. Ren stopped a few feet from the shop.

"So. You wanna talk or what?" Ren asked without turning around. Emerald seemingly froze.

Ren turned around and looked at her.

"Well? You wanna talk or attack me?" Ren asked.

Emerald opened her mouth to talk, but no words came out. Ren continued to walk away.

Emerald sighed before making her move.

"Hey. If it isn't too much trouble. I would like to talk… please." Emerald said. Ren stopped moving and turned around.

(())

Emerald and Ren were sitting in seats at the shop. Lotus was in the shop as well and there was a lot of wet furniture because Lotus started to shake as he went in.

They were silent for moment before Emerald broke the silence.

"Ren? Was it?" Emerald asked. Ren nodded in confirmation. "I want to get this out of the way now. Thank you for saving me back in the forest." Emerald said.

"You're welcome." Ren said as he took a sip of a glass of water.

"Why did you save me?" Emerald asked. Ren goes silent for a minute.

"You're different from the others. You seem like you're not here for the same reason as Salem, or Cinder." Ren said. Emerald looked at him with a slightly widened eye look. She lets out a sigh.

"That's because I'm for the same reason as the others." Emerald said.

"Then why are you here?" Ren asked.

"Because I owe Cinder. I owe her everything. She gave me a chance no one else would." Emerald said. Ren remained silent, because he knew she had more to say.

"You may look at her like she's a monster. Someone who's heartless, but that's not what I see. I had no one. I was on my own since day one, and I had to steal in order to get money to feed myself. She took me in when no one would." Emerald said. "She isn't a bad woman."

"She's not?" Ren asked as he looked at her. "My friend, Pyrrha Nikos died by her hand. She used the Grimm and the White Fang to bring down the entire kingdom. Hundreds of people died that day. The place I was ever able to call home is gone because of that woman. Yang lost her arm. Team RWBY broke apart and My team leader spent several months blaming himself for her death. And you honestly expect me to believe that she's not a bad woman?" Ren asked. His voice was never raised, but it was clear that he was angry.

"I'm….. I'm sorry." Emerald said. Ren's angry expression seemingly softened. He was honestly shocked at her apology. "I…. I knew what would happen, and I knew what I was doing was wrong. When the fall of Beacon happened, I felt terrible, and I was weighted with that guilt for a long time. I never wanted any of this." Emerald said, tears started to stream down her eyes slowly.

"Then why did you help her do all of this?" Ren asked.

"Because I owe her everything." Emerald said as her tears still fell down. A silence fell between them. Ren pulls out some tissues and gave them to her. Emerald was surprised from the gesture, but took the tissues. Ren started to walk out and picked up Lotus on the way there.

"Thank you." Emerald said.

"Don't thank me. In the next few hours, you and I may be enemies." Ren said.

"You aren't gonna attack me now?" Emerald asked.

"No, I'm a nice guy." He spawned his two black wings and flew off. Emerald watched as this happened.

She got a text from her scroll from Mercury.

'Emerald, we're able to get to the second half of the relic now, meet us back at the ship. Cinder's orders.'

She typed in 'The dark angel is with them, be cautious.' But she thought for a second. She didn't hit send, even though she felt she should have.

She instead backspaced and typed, 'On my way.' With that, she sighed and walked out of the shop.

(())

On the side of the shop was a hooded figure, entirely in a cloak.

The figure's eyes were visible. They were a light shade of pink.

"The value of forgiveness never ceases to surprise me." The figure said, her voice, female. She walked into the shadows and disappeared in an instant.

(())

Ren flied back onto the balcony and walked into the room, where everyone was. Qrow, Ozcar, Ruby, Weiss, Blake, Yang, Fox, Yatsuhashi, Coco, Velvet, Arslan, Reese, Bolin, Nadir, Nora, Jaune, Ilia and Neo were in the room and they all looked at him.

"Did I miss something?" Ren asked.

"Lionheart has given us the all clear. He's ready for us to see the council. As you can see, we aren't the only ones headed there." Qrow said.

"It's about time. I got sick of him delaying everything." Yang said with a neck roll.

"So, when are we heading out?" Ren asked.

"In a few minutes, when the sunsets. We were waiting for you to come back so we could leave." Nora said. Ren nodded.

"Wanna get moving?" Qrow asked.

"Let's go." Ren said. The young hunters walked up and started to walk out. Ruby grabbed Ren's arm as they were the last ones to leave out.

"Ren, I heard everything. What happened to your uncle. I'm sorry that happened. I understand if you want to stay behind for a minute." Ruby said.

"I appreciate your concern Ruby, but do not worry, I'll be fine." Ren said. Ruby smiled before looking towards the door. Everyone was out of the room. She smirked.

"Is something wro-" Ruby turned around and pulled Ren down and kissed him on the cheek. Ren stopped talking right there.

"My way of saying thank you. For helping me train." Ruby said before walking out of the room.

Ren was surprised at this before shaking his head. He was confused as to why this happened, but he wasn't gonna say a word.

(())

On the roof of the Haven Grand Hall, two black winged pale skinned females one with hazel eyes, one with green. Kim-Ly, Marc and Rajak appeared behind them. These two were Kori and Shiroi.

"Where's Kobura?" The green eyed one asked. Her name was Kori.

"He's running a little late. He'll be here soon." Kim-Ly said.

"Ms. Branwen was speaking with Lionheart a few minutes ago. Looks like Salem's pawns have joined the party." Shiroi said.

"Such a shame we're the ones crashing it." Marc said. Kim-Ly rolled her eyes.

"Things are gonna get crazy." Rajak said as he say the group of Hunters walking towards the hall.

"Not yet, let's wait until they confront him." Kori said.

"This may be interesting." Rajak said as he looked through the skylight with a sadistic smile.

(())

The large group stopped at the door. Ren walked to the front of the group and looked at the door.

"Okay Lionheart, let's talk." He said.

He opens the door.

(())

 **And this was a bitch to finish. See you guys soon. Bandit out.**


	22. The more the merrier

Chapter 21: The more the merrier

RWBY, JNR, ABRN enter the building and are greeted by Leonardo Lionheart, who is standing on a terrace at the top of the stairs that is being held up by a statue.

"Hello, Thank you for coming." Lionheart said, he looked slightly confused for a moment. "There seem to be….. More of you than last time."

"Well you know what they say, the more the merrier." Ruby said.

"So where's the council?" Ren asked.

"Why… did you bring your weapons?" Lionheart asked. All of them looked at one another confused.

"Are huntsmen not allowed to bring their weapons nowadays?" Fox asked, Velvet lightly slapped his arm.

"Are you okay Leo?" Qrow asked.

"I'm fine, I just forgot to drink my evening coffee." Lionheart said with a small groan.

"Look, it's nice to see you, but we got work to do. Are we getting support from the council or not?" Qrow asked.

While the two spoke, Ren caught a black bird perched on a balcony railing from the corner of his eye.

"Well, the Raven showed up." Ren said. Everyone looked at the Raven.

"Mom?" Yang asked. Suddenly, Ren threw his dagger at her, and the blade was lodged into the balcony, barely missing Raven as she flew off. His dagger flew back into his hand.

She lies down behind Lionheart, transforming into Raven Branwen, donning her mask. Everyone glares at her.

"Raven." Ruby said.

"They really are magic." Nora said.

"Now why did you do something that foolish? At least have the decency to actually hit me." Raven said. She took her mask off. She had a smirk on her face none of them liked.

"What are you doing here?" Qrow asked, he clearly wasn't happy.

"I could ask you the same thing little brother." Raven said as she started walking down the stairs. "You've been little brother. Planning to attack own sister."

"Leo… What have you done?!" Qrow said.

"What do you think he did Qrow? He made the choice that benefits him." Ren said. Velvet, Arslan, Ruby and Nora looked at Ren.

"You have the spring maiden." Qrow stated.

"I do." Raven said.

"Then hand her over and let's work together! We can beat Salem!" Qrow said.

"All that time spent spying for Ozpin and you still have no idea what you're dealing with. There is no beating Salem!" Raven said with slight irritation in her voice.

"If that's what you think, then you've already lost." Ren said, he had slight haste in his voice which Raven glared at him for.

" You're wrong. We've done things that most people would call impossible, and I know the only reason we were able to do it is because we didn't do it alone! We had people to teach us, people to help us, we had each other. Work with us. At least I know we'll have a better chance if we try together. Please." Ruby said as she holds her hand out. Raven glares at it.

"You sound just like your mother." Raven said. Suddenly, Raven draws her sword and creates a portal with her Semblance. From the portal, a fireball is launched towards Ruby. Ren spawned his wing, and used it to shield her. The fireball made him slide back, but it didn't harm him.

"Ren!" Nora called rushing over to him as he made his wing disappear. Cinder stepped out of the portal.

"Hello boys and girls." Cinder said as Vernal, Emerald, and Mercury soon join her.

"Cinder." Ruby said with a glare. Cinder and the group line up with Raven, which lead to the others except Lionheart and Ren letting out a gasp.

"C'mon guys, is that any way to greet your old friends?" Mercury asked, which resulted in Yang growling at him.

"Everybody, stay calm." Qrow said.

The door opened and closed behind them.

Fox, who was at the end of the group with Oscar, turned around to see Hazel and Tyrian.

"The White Fang is prepping demolition and securing the school grounds. No one's getting in, and no one's getting out." Hazel said as Tyrian let out a small sadistic chuckle.

"Adam's here too?" Ilia asked herself.

"Was this a trap?" Reese asked.

"What do you think Reese?" Bolin asked in a way to say yes.

"Tell me Raven, how long have you been with them?" Qrow asked.

" Aww, don't take it personally, little bird. Your sister was a recent addition. The lion on the other hand... Entrance into the Vytal Festival was a real treat, Leonardo's been sending Salem all sorts of information for a very, very long time. Isn't that right, professor?" Cinder asked with a mocking tone.

"You son of a bitch." Ren said.

"It was you... you sit on the Mistral Council. You had information on every Huntsman and Huntress in the Kingdom, and you gave it all to her?" Qrow asked with slight anger in his voice. "I couldn't find any of them, because you let her kill them!"

Lionheart didn't say a word. He didn't look like he was proud of his decision, but he also didn't look like he regretted it.

"Aw now, don't beat yourself up about it, Lionheart, I'm sure Tyrian and Hazel would've found them on their own eventually." Cinder said, still in her mocking tone.

"What is wrong with you?" Jaune's voice said. Eyes started to fixate on him. "How can you be so broken inside... to take so many lives, and then come here and rub it in our faces like it's something to be proud of?!"

"Jaune..?" Weiss asked with concerned.

" **All with that damn smile on your face!** " Jaune said. He was enraged, and tears streamed down his face. Emerald looked at this and struggled to keep from looking like she felt bad.

Weiss drew her weapon, Ren, Reese and Yang followed in readying there weapons.

"Everybody, stay calm." Qrow said.

"I'm gonna make you pay for what you did! Do you hear me?!" Jaune said, borderline shouting.

"Kid!" Qrow said. The others readied their weapons as well.

"Well?! **SAY SOMETHING!** " Jaune shouted. After a moment, Cinder finally spoke.

"Who are you again?" Cinder asked. Jaune's eyes widened briefly before they narrowed into a glare.

Jaune transforms Crocea Mors to its two-handler form and advances forward. Cinder summons an obsidian scimitar and blocks Jaune's attack.

"Jaune!" Ren said. He ran as his wings sprouted. He flew into the air to help Jaune, but a sword slash hit him square in the chest. Ren was knocked to the ground hard enough to break the ground.

Ren sat back up to see the Kuro holding his nine feet sword.

"You've gotta get past me first bud." Kuro said.

Ren had a gash on his chest, which slowly healed as Jaune was pushed back. He engaged in the duel with Cinder.

Yang runs to join the fight, but Mercury jumped in front of her.

"Hey Blondie." Mercury said in the form of a taunt. Yang growled, but the second she activated her gauntlets, the skylight broke and Rajak, Kim-Ly, and Marc jumped down.

Rajak landed and ran towards Ren, but Nora swings at him with her hammer. Rajak jumped on top of the hammer to attack her, but she shook him off. Rajak kicked her back and turned his attention to Ren, only for Ilia to lash at him.

Kim-Ly threw a couple of kunai towards Emerald. She back the way, and the kunai exploded. Emerald used her weapons to Shield her face from the rubble. Kim-Ly turned around as Blake attacked her. She easily manage to take her down, then Emerald wrapped her chains around her and pulled her towards the ground. Blake gets back up, but Emerald kicks her back.

Marc kicks mercury in the face and use the momentum to flip and attempt to kick yang. Yang blocked and attempted to counter attack. Marc ducked under it and kicked her in the stomach. He turned to Mercury, who kicked him in the torso. Yang soon joined the fight.

"Take out the heiress. Don't bother wasting your power, she's not worth it." Raven said to Vernal. She quickly grabbed her sword and blocked an attack from Qrow.

"Running away is one thing, but this…. You've crossed the line!" Qrow shouted at her.

"Sorry, brother. Sometimes family disappoints you like that." Raven said.

"We're not family anymore."

"Were we ever?"

"I thought so, but I guess I was wrong."Qrow said. He pushed her back and the two engaged in combat.

Vernal walked over and confronted Weiss.

"Let's see if you can uphold the schnee name." Vernal said.

"I'm more than just a name." Weiss said as she readied her myrtenaster.

"Prove it." Vernal said. Weiss activates a glyph below her and projects herself forward to fight the Spring Maiden. Meanwhile, Oscar sneaks up the stairs to Lionheart while Hazel, Tyrian, Shiroi and Kori walked towards CFVY and ABRN.

"We just need the Rogue Tenshi, step aside and you won't get hurt." Kori warned.

"If any of you want our friend-" Velvet started.

"You'll have to go through us first." Bolin finished.

"I don't want to fight you." Hazel said, referring to both the black claw members and the hunters.

"Nor we you." Reese said.

"But we will so long as you're with her?" Nadir said.

"And if you want to hurt our friend." Coco said. Hazel, Shioi, Kori, and Tyrian proceed forward. As Lionheart watches the fights going on, he then notices Oscar walk up behind him.

"Well, this is not what i was expecting." He said. Lionheart rotates his weapon, having a glyph appear above it which then conjures a flaming rock that launches at Oscar, who holds out his arms in front of him defensively as the attack explodes. Oscar is unscathed, though his Aura shimmers. He continues to proceed up the steps and draws his cane.

"I know Ozpin's in there, bring him out." Lionheart said.

"Not gonna happen." Oscar said. He then proceeds forward as his attacks force Lionheart on the defensive. He manages to whack Lionheart back a few steps.

"Young boy, you know nothing of what you've gotten yourself into. I will deliver you to Salem and get out of this mess." Lionheart said, he grabbed a sword off of his back and prepared to fight.

"What do I do now?" Oscar asked.

"Fight." Ozpin said dryly. Oscar nodded and advanced forward.

Ren and Kuro constantly slashed there blades back and forward. They hit each other multiple times. They locked blades at one point.

"Your father will pay for what he's done." Kuro said.

"How do you know my fath-" Ren was interrupted by a dagger stab to the torso. Ren kicked him back as he held his bleeding torso. His healing took slower than usual. He stood back up and pulled out his own dagger.

Weiss leaps around on her glyphs, dodging Vernal's weapons as she throws them like boomerangs. Weiss is then forced on the defensive and creates a large ice wall. She then stabs Myrtenaster into the ground as her Arma Gigas summon crawls out of her glyph. Suddenly, a large beam destroys the ice wall as well as the Arma Gigas before it could be fully summoned. One of Vernal's weapons knocks Weiss back several feet.

"Don't think I'm going to let you take the easy way out." Vernal said as she caught her weapon.

Jaune was knocked on his knees. Cinder chuckled at him.

"I'm starting to remember you, you're the dense one that can't tell when he's out of his lea-" Cinder was interrupted when Jaune took the shield part of his sword off and threw it at her. It hit her in the face. Jaune advanced forward and slashed her back.

"You talk too much." Jaune said as he put his sword back into two and and clashes blades with Cinder again. Ruby watches them fight but is snapped out of her distraction by Ren being thrown at her feet.

Kuro attacked, but Ruby stepped in, blocking attacks with her scythe. However, she took a slash to the leg. Ren grabbed her and pulled her back a little.

"His sword and dagger, they cut through aura." Ren warned. Ren stood back up with a small limp.

"Why are you doing this?! What did Ren do to you?" Ruby asked.

"It's not what he did, it's what his father has done! You wanna stand in my way? You'll be next!" Kuro said. Kuro rushed in and shoved Ruby to the side. He struck at Ren with bunch of strikes before locking blades with him again.

Ruby attempted to shoot him, but Kuro spawned his wing and knocked the bullet towards Weiss, which narrowly misses her, who is blocking Vernal's shots with Myrtenaster. Weiss attempts to summon, but Vernal is too quick and prevents her from doing so. Eventually, Weiss manages to launch Vernal out of the way and prepares to summon again. Suddenly, Vernal appears in front of her and lands an attack that depletes Weiss' aura. Weiss lets out a pained scream. Jaune hears this and looks in her direction as tears well up in his eyes.

"Are you gonna let her die too?" Cinder taunted.

"Stop messing with me?!" Jaune shouted as tears flowed down his cheeks.

"If that's what you want." Cinder said. She then ignites her scimitar, which is now fully coated in flames. Cinder and Jaune proceed forward to clash. Ruby looks behind her and notices this. She briefly thinks back to the moment when Pyrrha Nikos died, and her eyes start to shine bright again.

" **NOOOOOOOOOOO!** " Ruby shouted. Kuro knocked her unconscious with a blow to the back of the head. Ren's Yami no Tenshi state sprouted and took over.

"SILVER EYES!" Ren's distorted voice could be heard shouting. Suddenly, Cinder falls to her knees, holding her arm in pain. Jaune looked and saw Ren about to attack Ruby. Jaune ran over and blocked devastating punch with his shield. Jaune was knocked back from the punch and knocked on his back.

Kuro took the opportunity to slash Ren in his back, cutting clean through the flesh. Ren let out a pained scream as he fell to the ground unconscious. His form returned to normal. Raven glanced at him with a slightly worried expression, this almost resulted in her almost getting stabbed by Qrow.

Jaune attempted to stand up, but Cinder stepped on him to hold him down.

"You couldn't even kill me when you had the opportunity. You truly are pathetic." Cinder said. Jaune tried to grab his sword, but it was too out of reach.

"You're nothing but a failure with a death wish." Cinder said, she made an obsidian spear.

"If I die buying them time, then so be it. They're the ones that matter." Jaune said.

Cinder looks to Jaune's comrades as they fight against their respective foes, before smiling evilly back down to him.

"Is that so?" Cinder asked. She watched as Ren woke up and stood on his knees. Kuro smirked. He dropped his disguise and appeared as Shi. Ren recognized him from his memory. From his memory, he watched a little boy watch Hong get stabbed by Li.

"Time for your father to pay for what he's done." Shi said. Ren's eyes widened as Shi grabbed his sword. With his injuries, he couldn't stand back up.

She then notices Weiss get knocked back several feet away, and begins to slowly proceed toward her while she held an obsidian spear.

"No!" Jaune shouted as he watched helplessly. "NOOOOOO!"

Cinder throws the spear.

Shi slashed his sword and appeared on the other side of Ren. Ren didn't feel anything. His eyes were closed, bracing for the worst. He opened then and saw some kind of transparent figure hugging him. The figure was Li Ren. He had the slash mark on him which left Ren unharmed.

The spear Cinder threw impales Weiss through her abdomen. She gasps in shock as everyone stops their fighting and stare in shock as well. They watched as both the spear and Li's soul disintegrated. Weiss goes motionless from the injury and slumps forwards. Ren remained still from the shock of what he has seen. He watched his father's soul disintegrate.

(())

 **SCENE!**

 **Well, i'm starting the next one now pressed for time. See you soon.**


	23. Vault of the Spring Maiden

Chapter 22: Vault of the Spring Maiden

"WEISS!" Jaune shouted. Cinder smirked at she had accomplished. Jaune stood up and ran over to Weiss and picked her up. Oscar looks over to the unconscious Ruby Rose. Angered, he smacks Leonardo Lionheart with his cane, causing him to fall down the stairs and into Hazel Rainart, who remains unfazed as Lionheart falls to the ground. Oscar quickly runs over to Ruby. Nora ran over to Ren.

"Ren! Ren! Snap out of it, please!" Nora said attempting to shake him out of his shocked state.

"Ruby, get up! Get up! We need you!" Oscar said trying to shake Ruby awake.

Hazel watched as Lionheart stand back up.

"You're lettin' that boy make a fool of you." Hazel said.

"That's no ordinary boy Hazel. That's Ozpin. He's already reincarnated himself." Lionheart said. Hazel's eyes widened as he heard this. He looks over to Oscar, who is still trying to nudge Ruby to wake her up. He then notices Ozpin's cane being held in the young farm boy's hand.

"Ozpin?" He said. His calm demeanor was soon replaced with an infuriated one.

Ruby was waking up slowly.

"Ruby! You-" Oscar was soon interrupted by Hazel's voice.

" **OZPIN!** " Hazel shouted.

Oscar looked at who shouted to see Hazel. Ozpin let out an 'oh no' from Oscar's head.

"You thought you could hide from **ME?!** " Hazel said as he ripped off his tailcoat.

Fox, Qrow and Oscar watched as he pulled lightning dust out of his leg pouches.

"You'll pay for what you did! You'll die over and over again!" Hazel shouted

He stabs the lightning Dust into his arms, with his blood vessels turning yellow and popping out from his skin as well as having some lightning coat them. His eyes glow yellow, and he lets out an intimidating roar. Oscar slowly backs away, holding his cane up cautiously.

"Oscar! Get out of there!" Fox said, before getting punched by Shiroi. Coco attempted to shoot her, but Shiroi's wings blocked the shots.

Hazel leaps forward to charge into Oscar, but Qrow Branwen gets him out of the way in time. Qrow transforms his sword into its scythe form while Cinder watches. Raven Branwen and Vernal walk to her sides.

"So the cowardly lion was right. Ozpin was reincarnated." Cinder said.

"This isn't gonna be a problem, is it?" Shi asked.

"I'm not sure, but right now we got the upper hand. Let's not waste it." Cinder said.

"What about our new friends?" Vernal asked. She was referring to Rajak, Marc, Kim-Ly, Shiroi and Kori.

"Not our problem, They want the tenshi, they can have him. My job is done already." Shi said.

"Salem wants him as well." Cinder said.

"Not my problem. Now you've got a relic to grab." Shi said. Cinder rolled her eyes and looked at Lionheart.

"Leo! Open the path to the vault!" Cinder ordered.

Lionheart gets back up and approaches the statue in the room. He takes out his pocket watch and places it in a small niche on the statue. The hands on the watch gradually spin faster and the statue lowers. Yang watches the situation in front of her. She looks to Jaune and Arslan as they tend to Weiss and then looks over to Nora who is still trying to snap Ren out of his shocked state. Nora looks to Yang.

"Stop them! We'll cover everything here!" Nora said.

Yang lingered for a moment before listening to Nora and running towards them, Shi pulled a feather off and threw it at them. Said feather transformed into a clone and slashed at her, forcing her to slide back.

"Have fun getting through me." The clone said. Yang brought up her fists and prepared. Meanwhile, Jaune uses his hands to apply pressure on Weiss' wound, while Arslan holds her wrist checking her pulse.

"Arslan, talk to me." Jaune pleaded. Arslan shook her head.

"This is bad. Her pulse is dropping by the second." Arslan said.

"No, no, no, no, not again! Weiss, c'mon, please!" Jaune pleaded.

Vernal steps onto the platform leading down to the vault.

"Make sure they leave Ruby alive and the Angel kid comes with us." Cinder said to Lionheart, who nodded. Cinder steps onto the platform. Raven looks back a bit and saw Ren, who was still in shock, she clenched her fist had stepped on the platform. The platform then lowers down. Oscar is then shown dodging out of the way as Hazel slams his fist into the ground.

"Oscar." Ozpin called.

"No!" Oscar said as he dodged another attack.

Kim-Ly saw Ren's state and attempted to make her way to him, but Emerald wrapped her chains around her legs to trip her.

"Oscar!" Ozpin called.

"I told you, No!" Oscar said as Hazel punched him several feet into a column.

"Please, let me take over, I can handle him." Ozpin said.

"You told me I needed to fight for myself." Oscar said as he stood up. "So I will."

"This is not your fight." Ozpin said.

"What does tht mean? Why is he so upset with us?" Oscar asked.

"He didn't tell you my tale, did he, boy? I thought you looked familiar, to think that evil was inside you when our paths first crossed. Your blood won't be on my hands, it'll be on his." Hazel said as he lifted his hands.

Yatsuhashi jumps in the way to block Hazel's attack, but he slams his fist into the ground, the shockwave knocking both him and Oscar back. Yatsuhashi gets back up to engage Hazel.

"What's he talking about?" Oscar asked. Hazel held back a sword strike from Yatsuhashi with minimal effort.

"Tell him, Ozpin! Tell him how you KILLED HER!" Hazel said.

"Her?" Oscar asked.

"Gretchen Rainart was Hazel's sister. Despite her brother's wishes, she enrolled at Beacon Academy to become a Huntress and tragically lost her life on a training mission. Hazel... holds me responsible. Please, let me fight. I know Hazel. He's wounded in a way that cannot be healed." Ozpin said.

"You know now!" Hazel said. He heahbutts Yatsuhashi to the ground. "You can forgive me for what I'm about to do." Hazel began approaching Oscar.

"Did she know the risks?!" Oscar asked him.

Hazel stopped in his tracks.

"Did she know the risk of becoming a huntress?!"

"She was only a child! She wasn't ready!" Hazel said.

"She made a choice! A choice to put others before herself!" Oscar said as he lifted the cane. "So do I."

Hazel glares at him.

"Then you've chosen death."

"I'm sorry." Ozpin said.

"What?" Oscar asked, but before he could do anything, his eyes glew and his body falls to the ground as Ozpin takes over him. Ozpin looks up, and Hazel looks back at him, enraged.

"OzzzzPIIIIIIIIN!" Hazel shouted.

Arslan and Jaune were still tending to Weiss.

CFV and BRN were attempting to defend themselves from the others.

"She's hardly breathing. I... I don't know what we can do…" Arslan said.

The both of them look down to Weiss as she struggles to breathe, before suddenly stopping.

"No, it wasn't supposed to be like this! Please!" Jaune said, his voice starting to break. "We can't lose anyone else…"

Jaune sadly closes his eyes. Suddenly, a faint shimmering sound is heard and a white aura starts to coat over Weiss' body. Weiss suddenly gasps for breath again.

(())

Cinder, Shi, Raven and Vernal are seen riding the platform down to the vault.

"Are you nervous, girl? The first Maiden in - why, I'm not sure anyone knows how many years - is about to open a vault. I would say it's quite an exciting time. Don't you feel honored?" Cinder asked in a slight mocking her.

"No, I'm not concerned with any of this. All I care about is my tribe - my family. This is a burden, not an honor." Vernal said.

"Well, you've been conditioned well." Shi said.

"By the way, Kuro-"

"Shi." Shi said.

"What exactly did you do to Ren up there?" Raven asked.

"My sword, doused in ancestral magic, destroyed the soul of Li Ren." Shi explained. They all looked at him.

"It seems like you had a serious score to settle." Shi said.

"That tends to happen when you kill my loved ones. Not even your soul will be safe from me." Shi said. As the four continue to ride down the platform, they see the vault under Haven Academy - a massive cavern with a large tree that has glowing orange flowers. The platform reaches the bottom, and the gate protecting the vault is lowered into the ground.

"Hmm, it's certainly grander than Beacon's. I wonder what the extra effort was for." Cinder asked herself, vernal was slightly amazed.

"Linger later, just get the relic." Shi said. Vernal steps off the platform first, followed by Cinder, Shi and then Raven, the latter putting her mask back on.

(())

Hazel punches downward at Ozpin, who dashes back to avoid it. Ozpin dodges a right punch and and the straight punch that followed and cracked the column. He attempted another punch, but Ozpin backflipped and avoided it.

Lionheart was going to intervene by transforming his sword into a pistol to fire at Ozpin, but a laser shot broke his weapon. He looked to see that Ren had regained partial control over himself and had the third eye on his head to allow the laser shot.

Lionheart was gonna focus his attention on Ren, but Nora ran in to intervene. Lionheart backs away and attempt to shoot her with fire projectiles, but Nora blocked them. Qrow looked at Ren and ran to him.

"Kid, what's going on?" Qrow asked him.

"Longwei, he… he went insane when he saw Ruby was a Silver eyed. I'm struggling to regain control." Ren explained. "He destroyed my father's soul. I'm gonna make him pay."

"You've got two parties that want you kid." Qrow said. Ren started to stand up.

"Sucks to be them." Ren said. He looked around to see the others fighting. Ozpin and Hazel engage against each other again. Hazel tries to smash him with his fists, but Ozpin is too fast for him. Eventually, Ozpin manages to knock Hazel down on all fours. Ozpin then twirls his cane and prepares to deliver the finishing blow, but Hazel roars and smashes his fists into the ground, creating another lightning shockwave. Ren then walked to the edge of the platform, having regained control.

"What are you about to do?" Qrow asked.

"I'm gonna kill him." Ren said as his wings sprouted and stepped forward to fall down. As he fell, his Yami no Tenshi ink started to appear.

Weiss starts to gasp and breathes normally again as the white aura encoating her continues to glow.

"Huh? Wha- what's happening?" Jaune asked not yet figuring it out.

"Weiss!" Ruby called as she got Nadir's help up. She runs over to Weiss as Nadir ran back into the fight, only to be knocked back by Kori.

"What happened? What's going on?!" Ruby asked.

"I think she's going to be okay! She seems to be stabilizing." Arslan said now smiling.

Ruby let out a sigh of relief before hearing lots of struggling.

She looked at Yang, who was fighting Marc and Mercury, also fighting each other.

Marc knocked Yang back with a kick and turned to Mercury, who blasted him with a round from his boots and knocked him to the ground. Mercury attempted to stomp him, but Marc rolled away. Yang attacked him with a variety of punches before a kunai, thrown by Kim-Ly, landed in between them and created a smokescreen. Marc jumped through the smoke and performed a scissor kick and hit them both.

(())

Blake locked blades with Kim-Ly's tekko kagi. Kim-Ly spotted Emerald and threw a kunai at her, it went through her as it was an illusion. The kunai stopped mid air and located Emerald. Emerald, who was behind Kim-Ly, turned around and blocked the kunai. Kim-Ly picked up Blake and threw her into Emerald. Emerald kicked her off and ran back at Kim-Ly. Kim-Ly attempted to slash at her, but she only cut through an illusion. Emerald wrapped her chain around Kim-Ly's leg, pulled her off her feet and kicked her away.

(())

CFV was fighting Shiroi, and managing to give her a struggle. BRN was fighting Kori and giving her a struggle as well.

Yatsuhashi recovered from Hazel's initial attacking and was stuck in the middle of fighting against Rajak and Tyrian, who were also fighting each other. He was respectively holding his own. Ilia was giving him a hand as well.

Ruby then looks over to Oscar fighting Hazel, with the latter's attack becoming too wild and unpredictable for the young boy. Oscar is then hit by one of Lionheart's projectiles and holds his shoulder in pain only to take a hard hit from Nora. Hazel is about to punch at Oscar again, but Qrow pushes Oscar out of the way and takes the blow in his back, launching him upwards. Ruby then lifts Jaune's hands up to see that Weiss' wound has closed.

"Whatever you're doing, don't stop." Ruby said.

"I won't." Jaune said as he put his hands back.

"Good, Oscar needs help." Ruby said. Arslan looked at her team and then at Oscar.

"I'm on it." She said.

"What about your team?" Jaune asked.

"They've got it covered." Arslan said.

"Jaune and Weiss still need cover." Ruby said.

"None of them will get close." A familiar voice said. Ruby recognized him, it was Aka Tora. Ruby looked at him and smiled.

"Okay, let's make it happen." Ruby said. Aka Tora and Jaune nod. Ruby stands back up, transforming Crescent Rose into its scythe form and flips over. She lands to her sister's side and knocked Marc back. Ruby faced them ready to fight.

"Thanks sis. You okay?" Yang asked as she stood back up.

"No, I'm angry." Ruby said.

(())

Back down in the vault, Vernal, Cinder, Shi, and Raven walk towards the Relic chamber. Suddenly, a symbol on the ground glows bright, as well as the circle enclosed around it. Similar circles with symbols in them also glow leading up to the Relic chamber's door. The tree's flowers then glow even more, and it's petals gently fall and float around the vault. One petal falls into Vernal's hand.

"Having fun?" Cinder asked. Vernal glares back at Cinder as the petal in her hand dissolves into particles.

"Vernal, stay focus." Raven said.

"Oh, come now, Raven, let her enjoy this. It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience." Cinder said. Vernal looked up at the door as she approached it.

"How does this work?" Vernal asked.

"Once the Spring Maiden places her hand on the door, it will open. For you - and only you. Then _I_ will walk into the vault, and retrieve the second part of the Relic. No one else. Is that clear?" Cinder explained.

"Yes." Vernal said. Shi looked them.

"Try and make it quick. We've got an unhappy guest coming in fast." Shi said as he looked towards the elevator tunnel.

Vernal nodded and walked over to the door. While she does so, Raven slowly reaches for the hilt of her sword, but stops when Cinder speaks.

"You know, I've heard so many stories about you, Raven. They say you're a cunning leader, that you're strong, that you're clever." Cinder said. Shi, who had his back turned, gave a smirk, as Vernal hovers her fingertips close to the door.

"Shame they were wrong." Shi said. Cinder then lets out a blue, frost-like projectile from her hand.

" **VERNAL!** " Raven shouted

Raven reaches out, but she is too late as she is frozen in place from Cinder's attack. Vernal takes her hand away from the door and takes her weapons out on Cinder, but she is stabbed by Shi's sword in the abdomen and by an elongated Grimm hand coming from Cinder's left arm.

"Nothing personal, but I've got score to settle with the bird over there. Can't do that with you in the way." Shi said with a smirk he said as he pulled the sword out. Vernal is then pushed to the ground once, and she screams out in pain as she struggles to get the Grimm hand out of her stomach.

Raven's ice started to crack.

"Time for me to take what's mine." Cinder said. Eventually, Vernal stops struggling and goes motionless and quiet. Cinder smirks as she looks down on Vernal's body. Cinder soon realizes that something is wrong.

"Wha- what is this? Where's the power?!" Cinder asked. Soon, Cinder and Shi hear the ice crack from behind them and see Raven free from her frozen prison.

": You won't find it, because Vernal isn't the Spring Maiden…" Raven said as she takes her mask off looking down with her eyes closed. She opened them and revealed the red-flame effect coming from her eyes. " **I am!** "

Ren hits the platform, landing on one hand and his knees, wings sprouted and Yami no tenshi ink on his face. He looked at them with his eyes, normal. He approached the gate and pulled his fist back.

(())

 **I have turned into a workaholic to get this chapter out. Enjoy the chapter, see you soon.**


	24. Downfall

Chapter 23: Downfall

Ruby and Yang are shown facing off against Marc and Mercury. The sisters switch positions and leap forward to take on their opponents. Yang knocks into Mercury while Ruby takes on Marc. He uses his left boot to kick Crescent Rose out of her hands.

"You won't win this battle little girl. So step aside!" He said as he tries to throw a left cross, but Ruby ducks and headbutts him upwards. Marc steps a few feet backwards and holds his nose in pain, before growling at Ruby.

"You talk too much." Ruby said as she picked her Scythe back up.

Tora stood defensively, protecting Jaune Arc, who is still healing Weiss.

"Everything okay?" He asked.

"I- I think so. She's coming to. I just wish this would go faster." Jaune said in a slight complaint.

"Do not complain, you unlocked your semblance when you needed to." Tora said.

"My semblance?" Jaune asked confused.

"You are using your own aura to amplify hers. Because of that you're healing her wounds. My question is, are you worried that yours will run out?" Tora asked.

"A dear friend of mine once said that I have a lot of it. I still believe her." Jaune said. Suddenly, Weiss opens up her eyes, stirring.

"J-jaune?" She asked.

Tora's attention went back to being on guard. Arslan was avoiding strikes from Hazel. She throws her rope dart at him, wrapping it around his arm. Hazel grabbed the rope and pulled her towards him. He punches the platinum blonde back into the wall. Hazel then launches an electrical charge from his lightning-Dust enhanced arm, electrocuting her and causing her to scream in pain before falling to the ground.

"Arslan!" Bolin shouted from concern. Nora, who was assisting Ilia in fighting Tyrian, looked at Ilia.

"I'll handle this, go." Ilia said as she lightly electrocuted Tyrian causing him to stumble back. Nora ran over to take on Hazel.

"Will you be okay by yourself?" Tora asked Jaune.

"I'll be fine." Jaune said with a nod. Tora proceeded forward. Weiss regained consciousness.

"Jaune… what's happening?" Weiss asked.

"You took a heavy hit, you need to stay with me while the others fight." Jaune said.

"That's…" She sighed and smiled a little. "Annoying." She said.

Jaune smiled from this. "It's good to have you back, snow angel."

(())

Qrow was knocked back by Hazel into the wall and then falls to the ground next to the downed Arslan. Tora pounced on Hazel and clawed at his chest. Hazel tries to hit Tora, but he was too agile to hit.

Ilia was knocked back by Tyrian. Tora noticed the and used the momentum of one of Hazel's punches in order to pounce on Tyrian as he attempted to pounce on Ilia.

Ilia stood back up and saw that Ozpin was struggling to block flaming rocks being fired from Lionheart's weapon. Ilia lashed at him and got his attention. Hazel charges forward and punches Ozpin several feet back.

"Hiding behind the face of a child? A monster like you must be stopped!" Hazel shouted.

Nora charges at Hazel with a loud battle cry. She leaps into the air, but Hazel catches Magnhild and slams Nora into the ground. Hazel then grabs Nora's head, electrocuting her with his lightning Dust-enhanced arms. She screams out in pain.

"How many more children must die for you?!" Hazel asked Ozpin, Nora grabbed his wrist. Inadvertently enhanced by Hazel's electricity thanks to her Semblance, Nora stands back up and flips him over her shoulder. He rolls back several feet away. Nora then holds Magnhild up defensively, before Ozpin gets her attention.

"His Semblance... he can block out pain. It's how he is able to handle injecting so much Dust into his body." Ozpin said. Nora looked at Hazel, who stood back up.

"I don't need him to hurt." Nora said darkly. Hazel screamed and charged forward again.

"I just need him to GO DOWN!"

As Hazel nears her, Nora preps to swing Magnhild. She then swings her hammer right into Hazel's chest, her counterattack launching him through the wall and outside onto Haven Academy's quad. Adam Taurus, Ari and White Fang soldiers look on.

"What the hell is going on in there?" Ari asked. His attitude quickly changed as Hazel stood back up.

"None of your concern…" Hazel said.

Adam and his followers stare in amazement as they watch Hazel get back up. He then takes out a pair of red Dust crystals and stabs them into his arms. He lets out another roar as Ruby watches from inside the building. She then looks back to her friends allies and enemies, all of them looking tired and worn out from the battle they've endured.

"Stay focused! Our friends are almost done here." Adam said.

Adam and his followers get back to work and Ilia watched this go on. Kim-Ly and Emerald started fighting each other as Blake used a clone to avoid one of the kunai attacks.

She was gonna go back in, but she saw the white fang in her peripheral vision.

"This isn't good." Blake said. Ilia noticed that one face was missing from battle. She had not seen Neo since the battle began.

Blake made eye contact with Adam, who smirked and began to make his way to her.

"Where do you think you're going Mr. Taurus?" A male's voice could be heard. Adam looked to see who asked that question.

"Who's there?!" One white fang member asked.

They turn to the right, and see Ghira Belladonna leading a massive legion of Faunus.

"Your brothers and sisters." Ghira said. That wasn't the only legion either. To the left, team SSSN was leading another legion of Faunus. Ari recognized one of the faunus.

"M… Mata?" Ari asked as he took his hand off of his weapon.

Mata, a tall, tanned, muscular young man with short dark hair and peach eyes, wearing a plain white shirt, peach cargo pants and black sneakers and having two sheep horns on his head looked at Ari with pleading eyes.

"Please Ari… stop this…" Mata pleaded. Adam and his followers look all around them assessing the situation.

"Make no mistake, brothers! These are our enemies! And we will not let them ruin-"

Suddenly, Adam is interrupted when a Mistral airship shines its searchlight down on Adam and his group. Ironwood is seen on the airship with Kali Belladonna.

"Adam Taurus, this is Ironwood, I am here with the Mistral Police Force! Lower your weapons and surrender peacefully." Ironwood said over the P.A.

More Mistral airships arrive. Back inside, Ruby knocks Marc back a few feet. Marc then hears the sounds of the Mistral airships as their searchlights shine through the windows. Everyone stops what they are doing. Weiss leans up as Jaune continues healing her.

"What's happening?" Weiss asked.

"I'm not sure, how are you feeling?" Jaune asked. Weiss sits up and activates a summoning Glyph in her hand and then looked at Jaune. Then she hugged him, much to his surprise.

"Better." She said as she released the hug. "Much better."

She kissed him on the cheek, again, to his surprise. "Keep it up." She said.

(())

"How!?" Adam shouted to Ghira. "How did you survive the raid!?"

Fennec walked into view and stood beside Ghira.

"Fennec had some good in him after all." Ghira said patting him on the back.

"Give it up Adam! It's over!" Fennec said. Adam looks around as the crowds of Menagerie Faunus get closer to him and his group. He then pulls out a detonator.

"It is. For all of us." Adam said.

"Wait, stop!" Ari shouted. Adam's followers hold up their arms as they brace for the impending explosion. Adam presses the button, but nothing happens. He presses the detonator button a few more times, nothing happens.

"Adam! Are you trying to get us killed!?" Ari shouted.

"I am making humanity pay for **WHAT THEY'VE DONE!** " Adam shouted.

Neopolitan walks out from around the tower, dropping her white fang camouflage as she holds the wires in her hand that disabled the bombs. Adam realizes that this isn't in his favor.

"What do we do!?" Adam asked Hazel. Hazel cracked his knuckles.

"This... is _your_ business. Not mine. _Fix it_." Hazel said.

"It's over Adam." Ghira said. Adam yells out of frustration and charges at Ghira. Before he could get close, Penny, green portions of her clothes and eyes instead Red, kicks him in the side, sending him into a pillar. Adam falls to the ground on his knees, before yelling out to his followers.

"KILL THEM!"

The battle between both Faunus groups begin. The White Fang soldiers draw their weapons and attempt to fire at the Mistral airships. Sun leaps around twirling Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang in its staff form, The rest of team SSSN joined the fight. Hazel observes the situation in front of him but is then suddenly impaled by a white, glowing stinger. He is then pulled back inside the building and sits up to see that Weiss is back on her feet with a summoned Queen Lancer flying above her. Shiroi spoke telepathically with her group.

"We need to leave." Shiroi said to all members of her group.

"Let's go, now." Kori said. As the hunters and Salem's faction were distracted, She, Shiroi and Rajak disappeared into black mist. Kim-Ly and Marc pulled out silver orbs with black aura. Kim-Ly broke hers and disappeared into black Mist. Fox heard the sound of breaking and put his hand on the ground. A nine tailed kitsune made of Red aura appeared and ran to Marc and pounced, but it wasn't able to reach him before he disappeared into a black mist.

As Weiss prepares to fight again, she gasps as she notices someone entering the building. Yang and Ruby look back as well and gasp when they see Penny.

"Penny?" Ruby asked. She then noticed an opening. "Yang! Go!"

Ruby pointed to the vault.

Yang runs to the entrance. Emerald saw this, but she didn't move.

"Go." She said low enough for only yang to hear her. Mercury grabs her prosthetic arm. Yang's eyes briefly turn red before turning back to normal. She detaches her arm and continues forward, causing Mercury to lose his balance for a bit. She jumps down the hole leading to the vault. Emerald and Mercury attempt to give chase, but they are stopped by an ice wall that suddenly appears in front of them. They turn around and see Weiss with her Queen Lancer summon as she prepares to fight the both of them. Jaune watches from his position and smiles. Ruby looked at Penny, and Penny smiled at her before running to rejoin the faunus battle.

(())

Ren punched the gate the gate off of the ground sending it to Shi, who sliced it in half causing it to fall of the bridge.

(Cue Death Battle Music - Fight Like a Devil)

"Vernal was a decoy the whole time." Cinder said as she turned her attention to Raven. "The last spring maiden must've trusted you a great deal before she died. I bet that was a mistake…"

"You're awfully in a rush to reunite with your father." Shi said to Ren. Ren and Raven growled. Ren flew to Shi. Raven shot her sword out of her hilt before flying after it. Cinder used a fire blast to jump into the air and spawn an obsidian sword. Raven collided with Cinder and pinned her, sword to sword against a stalagmite. The collision cracked stalagmite.

Ren collided with Shi, using his StormFlower to lock blades with him, pinning him against the door. Both the fall maiden and the one winged were able to push their opponents back. Ren was kicked back as Cinder used a fire thrust to push Raven back, who bounced off the ground and flipped to her feet.

Ren sprang back to his feet and slashed at Shi, who was blocking the attacks effectively.

Raven goes on the offensive. Attacking Cinder multiple times, Cinder blocked them and attempted to slash her mid section. Raven flipped backwards to avoid it and made an ice platform to spring off of and attack. Cinder dodges and blocked a dash slash, and blocked more strikes. The two eventually clash, the strike breaking Cinder's weapon and the shrapnel hurting her Grimm arm. She holds her arm in pain.

Ren managed to strike hard enough to break the sword Shi was using. One part of the broken blade jammed in Shi's left eye.

"Aura won't protect your arm. It's grimm." Raven said to Cinder. She pulls the shrapnel out of her arm and faces Raven again.

Shi's aura shimmered as if it activated. Shi pulled the blade out of his eye.

"You put your soul in the weapons you wield to destroy others." Ren said to Shi. "You lost your own soul and became a monster just for Revenge."

"You turned yourself into a monster just for power." Raven said.

Purple Aura formed around Shi's arms. The aura summoned two handheld axes for each hand.

Cinder summoned another obsidian sword.

"Look who's talking…" Both Cinder and Shi said.

Shi and Cinder charged at there targets. During their bout, Raven quickly switches between the various colored blades in her hilt to counter Cinder's various weapons that she conjures. The aura around Shi's hand changed various colors as he switched other weapons out after breaking. As battles intensified, Cinder conjures a giant flaming sword while Raven uses her Maiden powers to create a massive ice sword.

After Shi's aura turned silver and he was granted gauntlets. Ren dropped his StormFlower and ran over to Shi. The two punched each other's fists at the same time as the two maidens clashed, creating a massive shockwave that shook the cavern. So much so that the fighters above ground felt the tremors.

The four fighters see the giant stalactites hanging from above start to drop. Ren flew into the air, Shi hung off the edge of the bridge, Raven and Cinder slid back to avoid the falling rocks, causing a dust cloud. Cinder's Grimm arm elongates through the dust and grabs Raven's neck. As the Grimm arm slowly drains her powers, Ren picked up a large boulder and looked at Cinder. Raven sees this and smirked, she sticks her palm out. Cinder blocks her face, thinking that would be the area of attack. Raven sends a frost-like attack from her palm and freezes Cinder's feet in place. Cinder followed her eyesight and saw the boulder, thrown by Ren, crash on top of her.

Shi, wielding 8 inch claws with white aura surrounding his arms, jumped up, stabbed Ren in the torso with them.

"She betrays you, and you still help her?!" Shi confronted. Ren headbutted him causing him to stumble back. Shi spawned his wing as Ren flew onto a stalactite. Raven, now free from her grip, does a massive leap into the air and lands on top of one of the falling stalactites. She looks down and notices Cinder survived the cave in, using her fire powers to fly up to her. The four fight their way around the falling stalactites. Ren suffered a stab from a katar blade to the stomach. Ren looked at the stab and did the unspeakable. He moved in, allowing the katar to stab all the way through. Ren grabbed Shi by the neck and shot the laser out of his head. Shi used a laser shot from his own head that matched the power of Ren's. The stalactite they were on exploded, Shi falls down to the dark abyss. Ren's body rolled across the bridge, katar still in his torso and sticking out of his back, and leaving a trail of blood from where he had traveled. He landed next to his StormFlower as both layers of his aura depleted.

The other stalactites landed and the two maidens landed on their knees, panting in exhaustion while their Auras shimmer as they are about to break.

"Had enough yet?" Raven asked as she stood up.

"Shut up!" Cinder shouted at her.

"If you were stronger or more clever, then maybe... you'd remember to watch your back!" Raven said. Cinder glares at her, wondering what the avian was talking about, but then gasps as she looks behind her. She notices the dying Vernal aiming one of her weapons at her and fires. Cinder blocks the attack, but two things happened. The first thing to happen was Ren mustering the strength to pull his father's dagger out and threw it at Cinder. The black dragon on the dagger, as well as the StormFlower, disappeared as soon as the dagger cut Cinder's grimm arm off and lodge in the wall. The next thing to happen was Raven landing a devastating lightning attack on Cinder's face, shattering her mask and revealing the heavily scarred left side. The sheer force of the attack sends Cinder over the edge of the vault's walkway and above the abyss. She stares back up at Raven, who uses her powers to freeze the Fall Maiden into an ice statue. Cinder's frozen body falls down into the dark depths of the abyss, fading from view. Raven looks down as she watches her enemy continue plunging, before deactivating her Maiden powers and sighing.

"Thank you Vernal." Raven said as she sadly looks over to the now-deceased Vernal, whose eyes remain open on her lifeless body. Raven walks over to Vernal's corpse and gently closes her eyes.

Raven later heard the sound of a blade being pulled out of flesh. She turned to see that Ren had pulled the Katar out of his torso, which disintegrated. Raven looked at Ren's injuries. His forehead was bleeding over his left eye, he had eight puncture wounds in his torso, multiple slashes on his body and blood running down his leg.

He managed to stand up, holding his bleeding torso. He looked at Raven with a pained look. He started to walk to Raven, his blood dripping on the ground as he walked.

"Kid, I-" Raven started to saw, Ren dropped to one knee. He looked at Raven as she started walking towards him. She kneels to his height. Upon getting close, she saw that he had tears in his eyes. Not from physical pain, but from emotional pain.

"Please, just….. Just leave me." Ren said. Raven was stunned as he said that. "Get the second part of the relic and go."

"Don't talk like that kid. I'm not gonna-"

"You got my father's soul destroyed by partnering with him. Please, just leave me." Ren said, he sounded broken. In both spirit and in heart.

Raven attempted to put a hand on his shoulder, but Ren found the strength to stand up again.

"Ren, please. I need to get you some help or you're gonna die." Raven pleaded.

"Since when do you care about anyone other than yourself? Or that tribe of bandits you call a family?" Ren said. "My father killed his own family. His own brother to save your life, and this is how you pay him back."

Raven slowly became enraged. " _ **Who do you think you are, lecturing me?! Do you have any idea what I have been through?!**_ "

"No, I don't. I had to go off of what I saw. A woman who was troubled, and complicated, but she fought for what she believed in, whether it was her team or her tribe! But she didn't care who she hurt to do it! Even if it's her own Daughter!" Ren shouted back.

"I did what I had to do to survive! You don't know me, you don't know what I've been through, the choices I've had to make! I've stared death in the face over and over again! And every time I've spat in that face and survived, because I'm strong enough to do what others won't!" Raven shouted back, in her anger, her maiden powers reactivated.

"You don't know the first thing about strength! You turn your back on people, you're own daughter and family! You run away when things get too hard, you put others in harm's way instead of yourself! My father was killed for the second time because of you! You may be powerful, but you are not strong." Ren said. Raven's eyes closed from what was being said. Her maiden powers deactivated. Tears slowly streamed out of her eyes. She walked to Ren.

"I'm sorry…. But I can't let you die." Raven said. Ren was later caught off guard when Raven pulled him into a kiss. Grabbing his face and pressing her lips against his.

Soft and warm were the first words that came to his mind. The kiss lasted for what felt him a minute, even though it was a few seconds, before Raven released. The very second she released the kiss, Ren passed out from blood loss. His wounds weren't healing fast enough to keep him from passing out.

A few seconds later, Raven sat him against the wall and walked over to the door and Reactivated her Maiden powers again and begins the process to unlock the chamber. Eventually, the door opens up, and on the other side, a massive desert is shown with a path leading to the Relic of Knowledge, which rests on a stone pedestal. However, she didn't walk inside to retrieve it. Instead she activated a portal, placed Ren's arm over her shoulder and walked towards it.

Raven stopped before entering the portal and sighed. "Take the relic." Raven said.

Yang, who had landed minutes after the battle, and had heard the whole thing looked at her mother, who looked back.

Yang nodded as Raven stepped through the portal. As Raven's portal disappeared, Yang looked at the relic. Her stunned expression turned sad.

(())

 **I stayed up all night writing that fight scene. Inspired by the Ryu vs Jin death battle. Next chapter will be the finale. Hope you enjoy, see you, peace.**


	25. Haven's Fate Ren's Fate

Chapter 24: Haven's Fate/Ren's Fate

Outside on the quad of Haven Academy. The battle between the White Fang and the Menagerie Faunus as well as the Mistral police force continues. One of the Mistral airships shines its searchlight on three White Fang soldiers.

"Cease fire, immediately!" A mistral policeman shouted over the P.A.

The three try to run away, but they are stopped by a combined group of Menagerie Faunus and Mistral policemen led by Fennec and Ghira. Eventually, two of the White Fang soldiers drop their weapons and hold their hands in the air to surrender when they are surrounded. The last White Fang soldier tries to fire his weapon, but it is whipped out of his hands and he is tackled and restrained to the ground by Fennec.

"Thank you." A female rabbit faunus said. Fennec looked at the rabbit faunus and nodded. Elsewhere, Penny stood victorious over Adam Taurus, who was on his knees before standing back up.

"I will make it my goal to make Blake regret coming back." Adam said.

"Authorities are within route." Penny said. "I'd advise that you peacefully give yourself up."

"I will never relent to any of you." Adam said as he was angered.

"You're comrades seem to have more common sense than you do. They aren't willing to fight alongside or for a maniac like you." Penny said. This made Adam look around, seeing his followers surrendering to the overwhelming numbers of forces Ghira brought with him, only proving Penny's point right. A searchlight then shines down on him.

Adam growls and looks as Penny approached him. Adam throws down a smoke pellet, impairing Penny's sensors and vision. Once they recovered, Penny saw Adam running away. Penny was gonna pursue him, but Fennec stopped her.

"Don't. He's luring you away to pick you off. I'm hearing some struggles in the great hall." Fennec said. Penny got the hint and ran off to the great hall, her blue mode activated.

(())

Back inside the Great Hall, Hazel Rainart launches fireballs from his fists with his fire-Dust enhanced arms at Weiss Schnee's summoned Queen Lancer. The Lancer dodges out of the way of the blasts. Team JN, and ABRN were fending themselves from Mercury Black and Emerald Sustrai's shots. Ilia and team CFVY were struggling to keep up with Tyrian and Lionheart's projectiles, mainly due to fatigue.

"You guys okay?" Jaune asked after blocking a few shots from Mercury.

Nora coughed while Bolin groaned from exhaustion.

"Surviving." Nora said.

"I don't know how that big guy is still standing. He recharges his Aura faster than I've ever seen!" Bolin exclaimed.

Ozcar watched as Qrow flew in bird form and transformed, grunting from pain.

"He's sheer willpower."

A fireball is launched at Ozcar's feet, resulting in him retreating behind a column.

"We just need to get him to his limit!" Ozpin said. The Queen Lancer Summon fired projectiles at Lionheart. Lionheart blocked the attacks with his sword and glyph dial before knocking the summon away with a flame torrent coming from his weapon. Hazel uses the opportunity to launch a combined fire and lightning attack which causes the Lancer summon to dissipate. Weiss stares in shock as her summon disappears. Suddenly, Penny jumps in and kicks Hazel to the ground before jumping next to Weiss and Ruby.

"Do you require assistance?" Penny asked as her blue turned back green.

"We need all the help we can get." Weiss said.

"Very well, I am Penny Polendina. I am here to assist." Penny said with a bow.

Hazel, Emerald, and Mercury slowly advanced toward the three of them.

"Okay." Ruby said, she felt a slight lump in her throat, as Penny didn't recognize her, but she shook it off.

"What's the plan Ruby?" Weiss asked as she grabbed Mytenaster defensively.

Lionheart tries to launch an attack on her, but Ruby shoots at his shoulder. Bleeding from his shoulder, Lionheart quickly runs off to a nearby door.

"You gotta be kidding me." Mercury said in disbelief. Hazel lets out a fearsome roar, while Emerald, Tyrian and Mercury just watch him.

Ruby got an idea.

"Bomb shield!" Ruby said. Jaune and Nora nodded and ran towards The four. Ilia joined them.

"Let's do this." Ilia said.

"Hey Weiss." Ruby called, resulting in Weiss's attention averting to her.

"Ice flower." Ruby said as she readied her Scythe. Weiss smirked and readied her Glyphs.

(())

Yang stood at the entrance of the relic room. A lot of thoughts going through her mind. What she heard, what she saw, and what she thought of the situation.

Her mother, a hardened bandit, who didn't care about who she hurt, cared about Ren. Yang didn't know much about her own mother, but she knew that the kiss she gave him….. There genuine feeling behind it. There was a spark. One somehow stronger than the one between her and Taiyang.

All Yang could as was why.

Why would her mom fall for Ren?

Why would she do all of this and then try to save his life?

But more importantly…. Why did she have to disappear again?

Yang may not have had the best relationship with her mother, nor did she know her that much. But she would have done anything if it meant being with her, even if it was for one last time.

Yang's tears fell down as she walked into the relic chamber. She approaches the Relic of Knowledge - an ornate, gold and cyan lamp - as it rests on the stone pedestal. Yang grabs the Relic by its handle, and small, indistinct whispers can be heard when near it.

She heard a gun click, prompting her to turn around, but she saw nothing there. She looked around, but all she saw was black Smoke, implying something disappeared. But there was something entrance. It was the first part of the relic. The symbol that went on top.

Yang had too much on her mind to be confused.

(())

Lionheart bursts into his office and runs behind his desk, frantically opening drawers trying to look for something. His shoulder was bleeding as he searched.

An ominous clicking noise caused him to divert his attention. As he looked, he saw Seer floating menacingly in front of his desk.

"Going somewhere Lionheart?" Salem's voice asked from the Seer Grimm.

"And where might you be going?" Salem asked.

"I'm leaving Salem! This… all of this is no longer my fight. You can deal with Ozpin, Qrow, the silver eyed and that Angel of Darkness yourself." Lionheart said.

"You poor fool Lionheart. You believe that there is a way to betray me, and turn your back on me whilst walking away with your life." Salem said with slight venom in her voice. Lionheart lets out a sigh.

"You…. you're right salem." Lionheart said. He hid a knife behind his arm as he approached the Seer. "I should not let something like a slight alter in the plan set me on the path against you."

Lionheart walked closer.

"I swear, from here on out, you have my undying and unrelenting loyalty." Lionheart finished and attempted to stab the Seer, but Salem saw it coming and used a Seer tentacle to impale the wrist with the knife in it. Lionheart yells in pain. Another tentacle wrapped around his neck and suffocate him slowly.

From her domain, Salem stares at the Seer in front of her on the table, leaning her head on her hand in disappointment.

"Coward." She said as Lionheart's suffocation was cut short by an impaling sound.

(())

Back at Haven, everyone except Penny was feeling tired and fatigued.

"It's over. Please… just give up." Jaune said. Panting in between breaths.

Emerald stood up from one knee as did Mercury. Mercury was looking angrier than Emerald.

"It's not over! Cinder will come back, she'll have the Relic, and she'll stop all of you! She won't let us down." Mercury shouted to them. Emerald was surprised that Mercury's cocky like demeanor was replaced with anger.

The platform leading to the vault is heard coming back up. Everyone stares as Yang comes back up with the Relic of Knowledge in her hand. Mercury, Tyrian, and Hazel looked in surprise as Cinder didn't come back up. All of Yang's friends, with the exception of Nora and Ilia looked up to her and smile.

"Yang…" Ruby said.

Emerald looked slightly saddened. It wasn't because Cinder wasn't standing with the relic, it was for the same reason Nora and Ilia weren't as happy as the others; because she didn't see Ren.

She didn't know why, but that was the reason tears started to float out of her eyes. Not the woman who gave her something no one else would, but the young man who opened her blinded eyes. The young man who could have let her die, but saved her. The young man who saw something different in her than just another enemy. The young man….. Who she took a slight liking to.

"Emerald, we need to go." Mercury said. Emerald looked as CFVY stood in their way. Emerald's breathing started to become frantic. She grabbed her head as a loud scream exited her mouth. Suddenly, the room turns dark as black smoke rises from the ground nearby. From it, a giant effigy of Salem, limbs bent and deformed, towers above everyone in the room. The giant Salem opens her eyes, and lets out an ear-piercing scream as it swoops down over everyone. The screen goes black for a moment. Afterwards, everything returns to normal, Ruby shakes in fear as she comes to terms with what she had just witnessed. Everyone in the room is still present, with the exception of Emerald, Mercury and Hazel, who have disappeared.

"What…. Who was that?" Velvet asked, cowering behind Fox, who was holding her hand.

"An illusion… but an accurate one." Ozpin said as he walked forward. "That…. was Salem."

(())

Outside, Hazel is seen running and carrying an unconscious Emerald over his shoulder, with Mercury following not too far behind him. Up in the tree branches, Adam watches his allies run, before he too leaves.

(())

Blake lets out a sigh of relief as she looked to see her parents walk into the building. Blake runs to them and hugged them.

"The police rounded up the remaining White Fang members. Haven is safe." Kali said.

"Unfortunately, it appears that Adam has escaped." Ghira added.

"Although that may be true chieftain, his leadership in the white fang shatters today. White fang won't support a leader that abandons his people. He won't have their help after this. He'll have no one at all. And the White Fang will be left divided." Fennec said. As they spoke amongst each other before Ilia walked over to Yang, Nora following behind her.

"Y-yang… what happened?" Nora asked.

"Where's Ren?" Ilia asked.

"I don't know exactly. When I got down there, Cinder was gone, and Vernal was dead." Yang explained.

"Your mom and Ren?" Nora asked.

"Gone. I'm….. I'm sorry." Yang said. Nora looked down saddened. Ilia puts a hand on her shoulder to comfort her, which slightly worked.

"Well, at least you're okay firecracker." Qrow said.

Ruby let out a groan as she fell to her knees. Blake caught her.

"Are you okay?" Blake asked.

"I should be asking you guys." Ruby said with a sigh. Yang and Weiss soon walked over to them. As they conversated, Jaune looked at them as they shared a hug.

"Goodbye Team RNJR." He said with a slight saddened expression. A bark got his attention. He turned to see Lotus, Ren's wolf, walking towards him before sitting in front of him. Neopolitan walked to him as well, she looked like she was searching for someone.

"If you're looking for Ren, I'm afraid he's not here." Jaune said. Neo looked at Jaune and started to use sign language.

"(Is he dead?)" Neo asked, her eyes begging for the answer to be no.

"No. Knowing Ren, he's alive. It's just gonna be awhile before we see him again." Jaune said. Neo nodded in response as Nora walked back to Jaune with Ilia.

"You okay Jaune?" Nora asked.

"Yeah, just….. It's down to two of us now." Jaune said.

"Yeah… I know." Nora said. Neo tugged on Jaune's hoodie. Jaune looked at Neo.

"(No. it's not.)" Neo said. "(I'm here to help.)"

"Are you sure?" Jaune asked.

"(Positive. I think it's time I really pay back the favor after Ren save my life.)" Neo replied. Jaune smirked and nodded.

"What did she say?" Nora asked.

"She said she's willing to help us." Jaune answered. Ilia looked at them, before deciding to speak herself.

"I would like to help too… count me in." Ilia said. Jaune looked at her and nodded. Lotus walked to Nora and panted happily, prompting her to pet her.

"We did it." Qrow said. "I don't know how, but we did it. You okay Oz?"

Oscar was back in control as he walked with a limp to Qrow.

"I'm alright." Oscar said.

"Kid?" Qrow asked, not expecting Oscar to be back in control.

"He's resting. Too much energy fighting." Oscar said, panting out of breath.

"Hey, wizard, don't strain yourself." Qrow said from concern.

"No. He had... a message... (taking a few more pants) We must... get the lamp to... Atlas." Oscar said as he groans and falls, but Qrow catches him. He lays the exhausted farm boy on the ground and looks over as the teams looked at Qrow. Qrow then stands back up, and looks to the Relic he holds in his hand. The lamp is seen glowing brightly as the indistinct whispers are heard again. Qrow sighs.

"Next stop….. Atlas." Qrow said.

(())

Taiyang was back in Patch, tending to his garden as he heard something resembling a portal open. He looked around and he managed to see a small blood trail. He looked to see that the blood lead to the back of his house.

He stood up and slowly started following the blood trail.

(())

Raven placed Ren's back against the house as she sat him down. Ren opened his eyes faintly, to see Raven kneeled in front of him.

She placed a hand on his cheek, leaned in and kissed him on the lips once again. She finally released the kiss before leaning in to whisper in his ear.

"I'm sorry….. For everything." Raven said as she gave him a hug. "Please, just survive."

She released the hug, and transformed into a bird and flew away.

Ren closed his eyes, and then reopened them. His scleras were pitch black and the dragon ink appeared. His Yami no Tenshi was in control.

As his eyes opened, he saw a woman, in a hooded cloak with purple eyes looking down at him.

She had on a pair of green and black pants, which were shown from what the cloak didn't cover.

She reached up and took her cloak off and revealed that she had dusky rose hair held in a bun by a gray band and pink eyes. She was slightly transparent as she looked at him.

This was An Ren, Lie Ren's mother.

An kneeled down, and placed her hand on his forehead and a small flash of light appeared and disappeared and Ren slowly fell asleep. As her hand lied on his forehead, the ink disappeared at a rapid rate.

She looked at him with a smile before removing her hand.

(())

Taiyang walked around the corner and saw Ren against the building, bleeding from many areas of his body. Taiyang rushes over and places a hand on his neck to get his pulse. Somehow, to his surprise, it was normal.

Despite the normal pulse, Blood was still leaking out. Confused, he picked him up and began to bring him inside. He noticed a black feather fall from the sky.

He knew who that feather belonged to. He sighs as he brought Ren in the house.

(())

 **Ren will Return…. Both of them.**

 **This is the final chapter of this story.**

 **Unfortunately, I will not be able to make the sequel. On July 24th of this year, 2018, I am headed to basic training for the United States Army. Basic Training plus A.I.T, I will be gone until October. If anyone would like to make a sequel to this, feel free to do so. As long as the Ren x Raven and Harem and Jaune x Weiss plus Fox x Velvet.**

 **I will make a trailer to see if anyone is interested.**

 **Outlaw out.**

 **Peace.**


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